The director says he'll begin focusing on the anticipated follow-up to his Oscar-winning historical epic when he's finished Napoleon drama 'Kitbag'.

The long-awaited "Gladiator" sequel is rumored to take place three decades after the original Oscar winner.

Ridley Scott says the script for the long-awaited follow-up to his 2000 Russell Crowe-led film Gladiator is already in the process of being written and is inching closer to the top of his priority list.

"I'm already having the next Gladiator written now", the 83-year-old Oscar-nominated director told Empire magazine. "So when I've done Napoleon, Gladiator will be ready to go."

The Napoleon epic is on Scott's immediate to-do list following the back-to-back releases of "The Last Duel" and "House of Gucci" this fall. Starring opposite Joaquin Phoenix is Jodie Comer as Josephine. The "Killing Eve" Emmy winner earned raves out of Venice for her performance in "The Last Duel" and will reunite with Scott for "Kitbag".

Source: Press Release