Gladiator Drama Soon to Debut

A new drama series about Roman gladiators starring Anthony Hopkins that was written by Saving Private Ryan’s Robert Rodat and co-directed by Independence Day’s Roland Emmerich will stream in 4K-UHD from July 19.

Prime Video has picked it up for Australasia and parts of Europe whereas in the US it will stream on Peacock.

Here’s the media release:

Those About to Die, from director Roland Emmerich (Moonfall, Independence Day, Godzilla), will launch exclusively on Prime Video in Australia and New Zealand as well as select European countries, Canada, India and Sub-Sahara Africa on July 19.

All 10 episodes will be available just one day after the US launch. Inspired by the nonfiction book of the same name by Daniel P. Mannix, the series will immerse viewers into the spectacular, complex, and corrupt world of chariot racing and gladiatorial fights in ancient Rome.

Panem et Circenses – Bread and Entertainment; Rome in 79 A.D.: The centre of the Roman Empire is the wealthiest city in the world, and there is a heavy influx of slave laborers from the growing empire to take over the work.

The Roman population – bored, restless, and increasingly violent – is kept in line mainly by two things: free food and spectacular entertainment, in the form of chariot racing and gladiator fights. Those About to Die delves into the world of the games—a world characterised by bloodlust, greed for money, the pursuit of power, and corruption.

The races at Circus Maximus are controlled by four Patrician-owned corporations, the Blue, Red, White, and Green factions, and shares in the four factions are the most valuable things in Rome. As the taste in entertainment of the populace becomes more jaded and bloodthirsty, a specially designed stadium for gladiatorial combat is needed – the Colosseum.

The scale of the stadium as well as the gladiatorial and animal combats is enormous – same as the underworld with the flourishing betting business. Underground, beneath the stands, thousands of people work and live—among them thousands who will die for the games.

The world-class cast includes Academy Award winner Sir Anthony Hopkins (The Silence of the Lambs, King Lear) as Emperor Vespasian,Iwan Rheon (Game of Thrones) as Tenax, Tom Hughes (The English, Victoria) as Titus Flavianus, Sara Martins (Tell No One, Death in Paradise) as Cala, and Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson (Game of Thrones) as Viggo, Jojo Macari (Sex Education) as Domitian, Gabriella Pession (Crossing Lines) as Antonia, Dimitri Leonidas (Rosewater, Renegades) as Scorpus, Emilio Sakraya (60 Minuten, Rheingold, 4 Blocks)  as Xenon, Moe Hashim (Ted Lasso) as Kwame, Rupert Penry Jones (Whitechapel) as Marsus and others.

Those About to Die from AGC Television was co-commissioned by High End Productions, the Joint Venture recently created by Herbert G. Kloiber and Constantin Film, together with the American streaming provider Peacock and is produced by Centropolis Entertainment, Hollywood Gang Productions and Street Entertainment.

The series is created by Academy Award nominated writer Robert Rodat (The Patriot, Saving Private Ryan), and directed by Roland Emmerich, together with Marco Kreuzpaintner (Beat, The Lazarus Project).

Roland Emmerich, Harald Kloser, Gianni Nunnari, Stuart Ford, Lourdes Diaz, Miguel A. Palos Jr., Marco Kreuzpaintner, Robert Rodat, Herbert G. Kloiber, Martin Moszkowicz, Oliver Berben, Jonas Bauer, Charles Holland and Namit Malhotra are executive producers of the series.