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Denzel Washington dropped a juicy tidbit during his recent appearance on the Gayety podcast, released on October 31. The legendary actor revealed that while filming the highly anticipated Gladiator II, he shared an on-screen kiss with a male co-star—but the scene didn’t make it to the final cut.
“I actually kissed a man in the film, but they took it out,” Washington said. “I think they got chicken. I kissed a guy full on the lips, and I guess they weren’t ready for that yet. I killed him about five minutes later. It’s Gladiator. It’s the kiss of death.”
Washington stars as Macrinus, a powerful Roman figure who owns a stable of gladiators. The film’s script hints at his character’s past relationships with men, sparking Gayety to cheekily ask, “How gay is the Roman empire?” Washington’s answer didn’t disappoint.
Denzel later hinted at his retirement plans with one of his final roles being in the third Black Panther film. Gladiator is set to hit theatres on November 22 of this year.