Marcus Acacius, also known as simply Acacius, is a general. His invasion of Numidia forces Lucius Verus into slavery. He trained as a junior officer under Maximus Decimus Meridius. He is the husband of Empress Lucilla.
Profile[]
General Acacius is a man with deep regret in his life who doesn't know where to go with it. Having learned from the best, a code of honor is ingrained into his training and his existence, but he is ultimately a different person, making him capable of different things from Meridius. He is a symbol of everything that Lucius Verus detests.[1]
History[]
General Acacius once served under Maximus Decimus Meridius, the Roman hero general who was later forced into slavery as a Gladiator under Emperor Commodus. Following Commodus's death, Acacius became a general himself under the new emperors Caracalla and Geta and married Lucilla, Commodus's brother and daughter of former emperor Marcus Aurelius, who was slain by Commodus.
General Acacius leads a number of raids under Carcalla and Geta, further expanding Rome's territories. His latest conquest is Numidia, a small town on the coast of Africa. Upon his return, the emperors declare that there shall be games in the Colosseum in honor of his conquest. He states that he requires no games, that the respect of the people of Rome is enough for him, but they call him modest. They tell him that there are still many conquests awaiting, such as Persia and India. When he protests that Rome has too many mouths to feed, they tell him that they can eat war.
Acacius returns to his wife Lucilla, telling her of his dissatisfaction with the way things are going. He then explains that he has a plan: that he has 5,000 soldiers loyal to him who he has in waiting at Ulster. On the final day of the Games, they will storm the Colosseum and arrest the emperors for their crimes against the Senate.
Unfortunately, however, Acacius's plan is heard by Senator Thraex, who is in debt to Macrinus, a warlord who both supplies arms as well as Gladiators for the games. He reports the plan to Macrinus, who takes the details directly to the two emperors. In response, Caracalla and Geta arrest both Acacius and Lucilla. Caracalla, enraged, and being the less sane brother, wishes to kill Acacius personally for his treachery, but Geta stops this, stating that their deaths must be public. It is therefore decided that Lucilla will watch while General Acacius is brought inside the Coloseeum to be slaughtered.
The manner of Acacius's death is arranged: he is to battle one Hanno, a newly minted Gladiator who was one of the slaves captured in Acacius's sacking of Numidia. However, unknown to the emperors, but known to Lucilla and Acacius, "Hanno" is actually Lucius Verus, Lucilla's daughter, grandson of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, and secretly the son of Maximus Decimus Meridius. Upon entry into the Colosseum, Lucius is at first full of rage for the man who took him away from his life in Numidia and killed his wife, Arishat. However, as Lucius is about to go in for the kill, Acacius tells Lucius that he truly loves his mother and that he loved his father as well.
Lucius stays his sword, unable to kill this man, his rage draining away. Enraged, the emperors shout for Acacius's death. When Lucius is still unwilling to pick up his sword, they instead have the Praetorian Guard shoot Acacius to death with arrows from the stands. In response, Lucius stokes the anger of the crowd, asking if this is how Rome treats its heroes. The emperors, as well as Macrinus, are forced to flee as the crowd turns violent. Macrinus later confronts Lucius, telling him that they had a deal, asking why he let Acacius live. Lucius reminds him that he bought a Gladiator and not a mere slave, telling him that his will is his own.
Trivia[]
The character's name as given as "Marcus Acacius" in promotional material published prior to the release of Gladiator II. In the film itself, the name "Marcus" is never used, but the character is twice referred to as "Justus" by the announcer at the Colosseum.
References[]
- ↑ Breznican, Anthony (July 1, 2024). Paul Mescal vs. Pedro Pascal: A First Look at the Epic Gladiator II. Vanity Fair. Retrieved on July 13, 2024.