It seems like some stories just won’t go away, and Ridley Scott’s proposed sequel to his 2000 picture Gladiator is indeed one of those stories.

Now, anyone who’s ever seen the phenomenal Russell Crowe-starring film will see one glaring problem with any possible sequel – that being that Crowe’s Maximus ends up dead by the movie’s conclusion. Still, that’s apparently just a minor detail that is no problem for Ridley. For while a sequel could technically happen without Maximus involved, Scott doesn’t seeMaximus’ death as any reason as to why the character can’t be the focus of any follow-up.

Speaking to EW, Scott said, “I know how to bring him back. I was having this talk with the studio – ‘but he’s dead.’ But there is a way of bringing him back. Whether it will happen, I don’t know. Gladiator was 2000, so Russell’s changed a little bit. He’s doing something right now, but I’m trying to get him back down here.”

As it happens, Crowe is also a proponent of bringing Maximus back to the big screen, and in 2009 he even commissioned Nick Cave to write a Gladiator sequel script that saw Maximus making his way through the afterlife.

Of course, Gladiator was a huge, huge success upon its release, winning plaudits from fans and critics alike, not to mention nabbing an impressive five Oscars in 2001, including Best Actor for Crowe.

Expect more on all of this if and when it develops.