Training Day team Denzel Washington and Antoine Fuqua are re-teaming once again on a historical epic of Hannibal The Conqueror, the Carthaginian general who famously defeated Rome on several battlefields and coined the Roman term ‘Hannibal is at our gates’. Per Deadline, the film will be made for Netflix under Fuqua’s first-look deal with the streamer.
The currently untitled film will follow “the pivotal battles Hannibal led against the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War (218-201 B.C.).” Hannibal led an invasion into Italy by crossing the Alps with war elephants and an army, launching what became known as the Second Punic War. His invasion pushed Rome to the brink as he gained victory after victory, making them fear he would march on the city and topple the Republic. Hannibal is known as one of history’s most intelligent and deadly tacticians, successfully outmaneuvering his enemies and planning his battles accordingly to the terrain and the needs of both his army and his opponents. Through his campaign he occupied most of southern Italy for 15 years.
Due to a war of attrition on Hannibal’s forces and a counter-invasion on North Africa, Hannibal was eventually defeated and forced back to Carthage where he occupied public office and later became a military advisor in another war against Rome. After that war failed and Hannibal was to be given to the Romans, he poisoned himself rather than be taken prisoner.
The film will be written by John Logan, who is no stranger to historical epics after writing Ridley Scott’s Oscar-winning Gladiator with Russell Crowe. Fuqua and Washington will produce with Erik Olsen and Adam Goldworm. Executive producing is Jeremy Lott and Frank Rodriguez Moll.
This marks another partnership between Washington and Fuqua. Not only did they film Training Day, which earned Washington a Best Actor Oscar for his role, but they have made The Magnificent Seven remake and The Equalizer trilogy, the third of which came out this summer.
In another interesting connection to Gladiator, Washington will be seen next in Ridley Scott’s Gladiator 2 which is set to resume filming soon after halting production for the duration of the SAG-AFTRA strike.
Ricky Church – Follow me on Twitter for more movie news and nerd talk.
