Maximus has close ties with the Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius. When the emperor's son Commodus strangles his aging father and names himself the new emperor, he figures that one of his main opponents will be Maximus, his father's favorite. So he tries to have Maximus executed, but the plan goes sour when Maximus escapes from his executioners, is sold into slavery and made into a gladiator. He is made into a slave, the lowest member of the Roman Empire. He loses his independence and his life, becoming the property of his master who sends him daily into the arena to kill or be killed in front of thousands of spectators.
Death can come in an instant.
His only hope is hope itself. Through the force of his will, through his desire for a just revenge for the murder of his wife and child, and most importantly, through the righteousness of his path, Maximus succeeds in winning the hearts of the Roman mob, and in defeating Commodus, the evil emperor. Power is one of those elusive qualities that we all aspire to have. We seek it through money, through education, through politics, and through our social ties. The Roman Empire ruled over the Old World for hundreds of years.