Last Known Photograph of Oliver Reed on the Set of Gladiator Before His Death

This is a behind-the-scenes photograph captured on the set of the 2000 epic historical film Gladiator. At the right side of the frame, actor Oliver Reed is pictured wearing the costume of his character Proximo, a former gladiator and trainer, smiling broadly. He has one arm slung over the shoulder of an unidentified female crew member standing next to him, who is also smiling, while his other arm rests on the shoulder of actor Ralf Moeller, who played the character Hagen in the film. Ralf Moeller is seated on a wooden director's chair in casual clothing, holding a cigarette and looking directly at the camera, with another unidentified male crew member behind him. In the background, additional cast and crew members are visible, including an extra wearing full Roman guard costume, standing near the stone building facade constructed for the film's ancient Roman setting. This photograph is reported to be the final image taken of Oliver Reed before he died of alcohol poisoning after participating in a drinking contest with sailors shortly after this shot was taken.

This image was originally taken as a behind-the-scenes photo during the production of Gladiator, and was widely circulated on 9Gag via its RSS feed, paired with context explaining the circumstances of Oliver Reed's death during the film's production in 1999. After Reed's passing, the remaining unfilmed scenes for his character Proximo were completed using CGI, body doubles, and unused pre-existing footage of Reed to finish the film. The post gained widespread attention online for its connection to the beloved film and the well-documented, infamous circumstances of the actor's death.