'Horse-drawn gladiators' storm London landmarks in incredible stunt for Gladiator II

A band of 20 ancient warriors, fully decked out in period attire, made a surprise appearance at Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus and even took a bus ride past Big Ben, to the astonishment of commuters and tourists.

This spectacle was part of a promotional stunt for the upcoming release of the blockbuster Gladiator II on November 15, which included an impressive collaboration on the globally renowned Piccadilly Lights. The adverts for Gladiator II, Lego, Trainline, TK-MAX and Samsung were all transformed into Roman-inspired stone.

The costumes seen on London's streets are authentic outfits from the production of the new film. Over 2,000 costumes were crafted for the Hollywood blockbuster by lead designer Dave Crossman and his team, including the costume worn by Paul Mescal's character, Lucius.

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The team also designed the attire for the Roman military and 150 gladiator costumes, each with its own unique design in the film. Creating these costumes required a variety of skilled artisans, including cutters, makers, leather workers, metal workers, jewellers, and embroiderers.

Dave Crossman shared: "I wanted to do proper-looking gladiators. I looked at mosaics and contemporary references from the time. They usually wore quilted padding on their arms and legs for protection, because armour was too expensive. The Roman military has basic soldiers, centurions, and supervising officers. Higher-ranking officers wore expensive scale armour or chain mail, and the rest of the troops fought in segmented armour."