Nearly 25 years later, 'Gladiator' director Ridley Scott revealed that Joaquin Phoenix almost backed out of his Oscar-nominated role.

Scott addressed the topic in a new interview with The New York Times, in which he was actually discussing Barry Keoghan, who had to drop out of Gladiator II. “Barry is one of the good ones, the same level as Joaquin Phoenix and Paul.

Director Ridley Scott returned to ancient Rome for the upcoming Gladiator II, arriving more than two decades after the original starring Russell Crowe and Joaquin Phoenix. When looking back on the first installment,