‘Game of Thrones’ Officially Meets ‘Gladiator’ in the Forgotten Epic Leaving Streaming
Kit Harington’s 2014 historical disaster film *Pompeii* is leaving Netflix in the United States. Directed by Paul W. S. Anderson, the film combines gladiatorial combat, romance and the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, and its departure may prompt viewers to revisit a blockbuster that drew on familiar epic-film elements.
Set in 79 A.D., it follows Milo, a slave turned gladiator, as he tries to save Cassia, who is betrothed to a corrupt senator, while Vesuvius erupts. Harington stars alongside Emily Browning, Kiefer Sutherland, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jared Harris and Jessica Lucas; the film earned about $117 million worldwide in cinemas.
- *Pompeii* is leaving Netflix in the United States.
- Kit Harington stars as a gladiator amid Vesuvius’s eruption.
- The film earned about $117 million worldwide.
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Pompeii was an ancient Roman city near Mount Vesuvius, a volcano that erupted in 79 AD and buried the city under ash. The disaster preserved buildings and objects, leaving a lasting record of Roman life.
The film follows Milo, an enslaved man who becomes a gladiator, and Cassia, whose family plans for her to marry a powerful senator. Its story brings together life under Roman rule, arena fighting and the threat of the eruption.
Kit Harington plays Milo, with Emily Browning as Cassia and Kiefer Sutherland as the senator. The film draws on the historical setting and familiar elements of large-scale historical dramas, while its characters and plot are fictional.