The set of Gladiator 2 has been thrown into chaos after crew members were reportedly injured in an explosion.
Six crew members had to be rushed to hospital after being engulfed in a fireball, The sun reported on Friday.
The long-awaited sequel is being shot in Morocco and the neighboring Sahara desert.
There are still few details about the incident, but it appears to have been a special effects shot that went wrong, causing the dangerous explosion.
A source from the set shared his hopes that the injured crew members will make a full recovery, although their conditions are unclear.
“It was terrifying – a huge ball of fire flew out and caught several crew members in its path,” the source recalled. “In all my years of filming, I’ve never seen such a horrific incident.”
The explosion is reportedly under investigation and witnesses to the explosion speculate that it may have been caused by a burst gas pipe on the set.
“Six production staff had to be rushed to hospital for treatment,” they said, and it appears no actors from the film were hurt in the inferno.
“We hope everyone will be OK, but it was a serious incident,” the source added. “Everyone involved, from the lowly runners to the star names, was shaken by it.”
The upcoming film is a sequel to Ridley Scott’s 2000 film Gladiator, which was a critical and commercial hit.
The historical epic grossed five times its budget and helped cement the stardom of Russell Crowe and Joaquin Phoenix.
Gladiator won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Crowe.
While the new film brings back director Ridley Scott, Crowe will not be featured as his character died at the end of the original film.
Paul Mezcal will star in the new film as Lucius, nephew of Emperor Commodus (Phoenix) and secret son of Crowe’s character Maximus, who was saved in the original film by his father.
He was played as a child in Spencer Treat Clarke’s first film, but the Irish actor will take over the role.
Connie Nielsen will reprise her role as Lucilla, his mother, while Derek Jacobi will also return as a Roman senator and Djimon Hounsou will return as a former gladiator and friend of Maximus.
Denzel Washington has joined the cast in a major role, but his character has yet to be revealed.
Pedro Pascal and Matt Lucas are among the new cast members, and Stranger Things breakout star Joseph Quinn will play Emperor Caracalla, who is often painted as a tyrant in stories of the era.
Gladiator 2 is expected to debut in theaters in late 2024.