Okay, so the White House dropped another one of their pop culture videos to end 2025, and this time it was… interesting. They used footage of Russell Crowe as Maximus from Gladiator, comparing his big speech to the troops to the way President Trump motivates his team. Honestly, after seeing all the other stuff floating around on social media – you know, the lighthearted songs with ICE footage, and even the really disturbing AI-generated stuff – this felt pretty mild, all things considered. But still, comparing anything to Gladiator feels… off. That movie’s themes just don’t really fit with any political administration, in my opinion.
The video was shared by the official White House Twitter account, which you can see below:
The clip features the opening battle scene, where Russell Crowe as Maximus delivers his famous lines: “What we do in life echoes in eternity,” “Strength and honor,” and “On my signal, unleash hell.” While these are powerful and inspiring words, they immediately precede a series of unfortunate events for Maximus.
Following the battle, Emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris) revealed he didn’t want his son, Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), to be the next ruler – he wanted Maximus to lead Rome instead. However, Commodus murdered his father, seized power, and sentenced Maximus to death. Maximus escaped but was eventually captured and sold into slavery, where he became a gladiator. The film reaches its climax with Maximus defeating and killing Commodus, effectively ending his tyrannical rule and paving the way for a potential return to a republic.
It’s no surprise people were confused by President Trump sharing a video that compared him to someone who assassinates their own leader – especially since he is the leader. The video, posted on December 30th, was likely a final message from his social media team before the holidays, intended to project confidence about the start of 2026.
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Currently, the video featuring scenes from the movie Gladiator is still available on social media. However, previous White House social media posts that used popular culture references were either taken down by the White House itself or removed by the platform due to copyright issues.
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Last October, a video featuring simulated waste being dropped on people used the song “Danger Zone” by Kenny Loggins, well-known from the movie Top Gun. Loggins immediately objected to the use of his music, stating that no one had asked his permission – which he would have refused – and he requested the video be taken down. However, the video remains available on Donald Trump’s Truth Social account.
The White House recently shared a video on social media showing ICE agents making arrests, and used Sabrina Carpenter’s song “Juno” as the soundtrack. Carpenter responded strongly, calling the use of her music “evil and disgusting” and stating she does not want her work associated with what she considers an inhumane agenda. The original post has been taken down from Twitter.
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2026-01-01 23:03