Once a great hero of the Roman Empire, General Maximus Meridas ha spent his life in battle to loyally serve his emperor. But when the emperor's jealous heir Commodus murders his way to the throne, he forces Maximus into exile and savagely slaughters his entrie family. Captured and sold into slavery, Maximus is forced to learn the warfare of the gladiator. Fighting for his life and his honour, he soon becomes one of the most feared gladiator in the empire. But when his enemy Commodus orders a great gladiator spectacle in Rome, Maximus' struggle for survival becomes a fight for revenge - revealing that the one power stronger than that of the emperor is the will of the people. Cover shows Russell Crowe as Maximus. Novelisation of the film of the same name.