Those About To Die (Prime Video, 2024)
Roland Emmerich returns with an epic sword and sandal series, Those About To Die, set in Ancient Rome, starring Anthony Hopkins as the Emperor Titus Flavian Vespasian.
The year is 79. At first glance, the great Roman Empire should be prospering, bathing in affluence. Yet, its people are hungry, cause the grain isn’t coming in. So they are also restless and even rebellious. They not only need food, they also want blood and sport, or preferably a combination of the two.
In the early stages there is some spectacular horse racing in the famous Circus Maximus. But the people want more! So plans are made to build an auditorium now known as the legendary Colosseum, home of the Gladiators, who fight each other to the death. Hence the title, which hails from the Latin ‘Ave Imperator, morituri te salutant’. Which translates as: ‘Hail Emperor, those about to die salute you!’
In all, Those About To Die would seem to be right up Roland Emmerich’s alley. During his long and illustrious career the German filmmaker has made sci-fi blockbusters like Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow, but also the dinosaur adventure movie 10,000 BC. The second director is Marco Kreuzpainter, who scored a big hit in 2023 with the Netflix series Bodies.
The main writer of the series is Robert Rodat (of Saving Private Ryan fame), who based the screenplay on the 1958 novel by Daniel P. Mannix.
The biggest name in the cast is of course Anthony Hopkins, who stars as the aging and ailing Emperor Vespasian, who is in the process of choosing a successor. So will it be his warrior son Titus Flavian (Tom Hughes) or the bad seed and evil politician Domitian (Jojo Marcari)?
The series boasts a large ensemble, but perhaps the most important character is Tenax, played by Iwan Rheon (Ramsey Bolton in Game of Thrones), who is Rome’s most notorious bookmaker, a character who excels as a creep who profits from other people’s pain. But hé is also weirdly intriguing. He embodies the aspiration of the series, the plebeian who want to rise up and become a patrician in the - quite literally - cut throat world of Rome.
Those About To Die isn’t exactly subtle. At times the CGI is messy and the actors often ham it up in true Emmerich fashion. But it keeps you watching.
Those About To Die is violent and bloody but it also has some meat on its bones. It is about secrets and lies, greed and corruption, it takes place in the corridors of power and in the shadows. It’s filled to the brim with soldiers, slaves, racers, politicians and other colorful characters.
The result is oddly compelling and Emmerich and Kreuzpainter bring the spectacle to go along with it.
Those About To Die aims to be a mixture of famous movies like Gladiator, Ben-Hur and Spartacus, and equally famous series like Rome and Game of Thrones.
So if you are the sort of person who spends an inordinate amount of time thinking about the Roman Empire - which in real life is apparently a thing - this series is probably for you.
Note: the series is on Peacock in the United States and on Prime Video internationally.