Gladiators: Warriors of the Ancient World
The Colosseum and Its Beast Hunter
TV-14
S1 • E4 Oct 30, 2025 44mIn 80 CE, Rome unveils the Colosseum with 100 days of games hosted by Emperor Titus. The spectacles include mock sea battles, gladiator combat, and savage beast hunts. At the centre of the blood-soaked spectacle is Carpophorus, an African beast hunter enslaved by the Romans. Trained in the art of killing wild animals, he becomes a star of the arena, famed for slaying lions, bears, rhinos, and more, drawing comparisons to Hercules. But while crowds cheer, Rome’s games exact a toll. Ecosystems across the empire are ravaged; animals are hunted to extinction, and people are enslaved to supply the appetite for bloodsport. When Domitian succeeds Titus, the games grow even more extreme. Today, the Colosseum stands not just as a symbol of Roman might, but as a reminder of the violence, exploitation, and ecological devastation masked as spectacle.
