Very few actors have a resume as impressive and wide ranging as Denzel Washington. Since he hasn’t been in a giant franchise…yet, his box office numbers aren’t as big as some of his contemporaries. However,

Denzel Washington absolutely runs off with "Gladiator II" as scheming Roman power broker Macrinus, a former slave whose end game is to become the new emperor. It's one of the two-time Oscar winner's best performances in his nearly 40-year career and one where he gets a chance to go as big as he did in "Training Day.

Directed by Ridley Scott, Gladiator II debuted domestically this weekend and it's already one of Denzel Washington's highest-grossing movies.

Director Ridley Scott returns to the site of one of his greatest triumphs with a belated sequel that follows the same beats, giving Denzel Washington a forum to scheme.