‘Gladiator II’ breakout star Fred Hechinger weighs in on co-star Denzel Washington’s cut gay kiss scene in the film. Hechinger, who plays Emperor Caracalla alongside his onscreen twin Joseph Quinn as Emperor Geta, told IndieWire that the kiss between Denzel Washington’s character Macrinus and another man did not occur with either emperor.

“If I had had a kiss with him, they would have kept it in the movie,” Hechinger said in a recent interview with IndieWire.

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During the premiere of Gladiator II in Los Angeles, Washington made it clear that the so-called kiss controversy was irrelevant. “It’s really much ado about nothing,” Washington said. “They make it more than it was. I kissed his hands, I gave him a kiss and I killed him.” Washington previously explained that the production was too “horny” to include the overtly queer community.

“Nickel Boys” actor Hechinger praised his “Gladiator II” co-star Washington for always keeping every shot on set dynamic and fresh. “Denzel will surprise you every day. That’s one of the reasons he’s one of our greatest actors,” Hechinger said.

And when working with animals, like Hechinger’s on-screen pet-slash-sidekick Donda, Washington’s ability to improvise proved invaluable. “There is a scene two-thirds of the way through the film. “It’s me, Denzel and my character’s monkey, and the monkey moves the way monkeys do, the way he wants,” Hechinger said. “She jumps from my shoulder to his and that wasn’t planned. That was completely impulsive of (Monkey Star) Cherry. And to me it’s like she took the entire subtext of the scene and brought it out. It’s very brilliant.”

He continued: “Denzel is a great actor who immediately makes something of it. He takes it all in immediately and uses it for the next part of the scene. And when I looked at it, I thought, ‘That’s just Cherry’s writing.'”

Hechinger, who replaced Barry Keoghan after the actor was originally cast in the role before moving on to film Emerald Fennell’s Saltburn in the summer of 2022, also confirmed that he did not bite at all during production, despite conflicting previous reports became.

“Part of the reason I came early into the pre-production process was so I could train with my monkey,” Hechinger said. “There are four monkeys and they are all siblings. Cherry is the eldest sister. You are in Spain. They grew up there and live with Mikel, the wonderful trainer who works with them. He helped me learn how to work with them.”

The two younger monkey brothers were originally supposed to share the role of Donda. But Cherry, the eldest sister, “felt most comfortable and wanted to do it,” according to Hechinger. “I mean, as much as I think a monkey can have the desire to do a production. But she was the most relaxed and really had big sister energy.”

Hechinger also began pre-production early on, partially transforming himself into the pale, sickly Emperor Caracalla. But there were no Geoffrey from “Game of Thrones” references for the look: “I’ve never seen ‘Game of Thrones’, I have a confession,” Hechinger admitted.

Instead, he found sonic inspiration in Robert Pattinson’s performance as a French ruler in The King. “I thought Robert Pattinson was so brilliant in ‘The King.’ I think he’s pretty funny in that,” Hechinger said. “I wouldn’t say I ever enjoyed re-watching it or anything, but at some point early on I was touched and inspired by what he wrote there.”

Hechinger’s collaboration with “Gladiator II” author Ridley Scott is also a long time coming. “I auditioned for Ridley early in my career and didn’t know he got through. I thought everyone was just polite and friendly,” Hechinger said, but remained tight-lipped about the project.

Although the feature wasn’t made, he added, “I don’t want to blow up his life if (Scott) wants to do it anyway.” Hechinger said, “I guess he had seen (the audition) and thought in certain ways Way to me (after Keoghan left). So that meant a lot.”

“Gladiator II” is in theaters now. “Nickel Boys” hits theaters in Los Angeles and New York City on Friday, December 13th, with a release to follow on Wednesday, December 25th.

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