Paul Mescal Wows 'SNL' Fans With His Singing Chops In Musical 'Gladiator II' Parody

We've all heard the saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it," and we've certainly all heard advice about doing what's working for others, in the hopes of it working for us, too.

With the whirlwind of popularity surrounding Wicked and Moana 2 right now, it wouldn't be at all surprising to see more musical adaptations surge onto the scene in the hopes of riding their coattails of success.

But only the folks at Saturday Night Live would think up a musical rendition of... Gladiator II.

During Paul Mescal's debut appearance and hosting role at SNL, he played the lead role as "the killing machine" in the musical adaptation of the film, the riff said to have "an extra 50 minutes of songs" to improve the experience.

The sketch opens with a new song called, "No Place Like Rome," with sets the scene for the film, and leaves Mescal saying:

"I think I'm gonna like it here."

It then moves into the actual preview of the film, featuring 50 new minutes worth of music, including Mescal singing about how he's "so much more than a killing machine."

You can see a portion here:

The sketch wraps up with Mescal singing about how far he'll go before he gets on a broom and sings a riff similar to the final notes in Cynthia Erivo's "Defying Gravity," as he flies off wearing a witch's hat.

You can catch that moment here:

That some viewers were impressed by the performance would be an understatement.

Others entertained the idea of this musical—or something like it—actually happening.

You can watch the full sketch here:

- YouTubeyoutu.be

Whether or not Gladiator II will be a hit or a solid follow-up to the beloved Gladiator is yet to be seen, but SNL might have just accidentally proven just how much some people love musicals—and how music can take a film like to a completely different place.