44 BC
- Brutus
- Julius Caesar
- Mark Antony
- Cassius
- Casca
- Calpurnia
- Portia
- Marullus
- Flavius
- a Soothsayer
- Cicero
- Decius Brutus
- Metellus Cimber
- Cinna
- Trebonius
- Ligarius
- Artemidorus
- Servant to Antony
- Octavius Caesar
- Lepidus
- Lucilius
- Pindarus
- Messala
- Strato
- First Citizen
- Second Citizen
- Third Citizen
- Fourth Citizen
- Senators
- Citizens
- Soldiers of Rome
117 AD
180 AD
- Maximus Decimus Meridius: A Hispano-Roman general forced into slavery who seeks revenge against Emperor Commodus for the murder of his family and the previous emperor, Marcus Aurelius.
- Commodus: The amoral and power-hungry son of Marcus Aurelius. He murders his father when he learns that Maximus will hold the emperor’s powers in trust until a new republic can be formed. After gaining power, he seeks to weaken the power of the Senate and establish absolute rule.
- Lucilla: Maximus’s former lover and the older child of Marcus Aurelius. Lucilla has been recently widowed. She resists her brother’s incestuous advances while protecting her son, Lucius, from Commodus’s corruption and wrath.
- Antonius Proximo: An old, gruff gladiator trainer who buys Maximus in North Africa. A former gladiator himself, he was freed by Marcus Aurelius and becomes a mentor to both Maximus and Juba.
- Senator Gracchus: A member of the Roman Senate who opposes Commodus’s rule. He is an ally of Lucilla and Maximus.
- Juba: An African tribesman who was taken from his home and family by slave traders. He becomes Maximus’s closest friend.
- Marcus Aurelius: The elderly emperor of Rome who appoints Maximus to be his successor, with the ultimate aim of returning Rome to a republican form of government. He is murdered by his son Commodus before his wish can be fulfilled.
- Hagen: A Germanic warrior and Proximo’s chief gladiator who befriends Maximus and Juba during their battles in Rome.
- Cicero: Maximus’s loyal servant who provides liaison between the enslaved Maximus, his former legion based at Ostia, and Lucilla. He is used as bait for the escaping Maximus and is eventually killed by the Praetorian Guard.
- Senator Falco: A patrician senator opposed to Gracchus. He helps Commodus to consolidate his power.
- Senator Gaius: A Roman senator allied with Gracchus, Lucilla, and Maximus against Commodus.
- Quintus (loosely based on Quintus Aemilius Laetus): A Roman military officer and commander of the Praetorian Guard who betrays Maximus by allying with Commodus. He later refuses to assist Commodus in his duel with Maximus.
- Lucius Verus: The young son of Lucilla. He is named after his father Lucius Verus, who was co-emperor of Rome until 169 AD. He is also the grandson of Marcus Aurelius. He idolizes Maximus for his victories in the arena.
- Cassius: The master of ceremonies for the gladiatorial games in the Colosseum.
- Tigris of Gaul. The only undefeated gladiator in Roman history, he was brought out of retirement by Commodus to kill Maximus.
- a slave trader.
- Maximus’s wife.
- Maximus’s son, who is the same age as Lucilla’s son, Lucius.
- Valerius, a Roman general in the army of Maximus.
