Spartacus type TV Show

[SPOILER ALERT: Read on only if you have already watched Friday’s series finale of Spartacus: War of the Damned.]

The saga of Spartacus the show and Spartacus the man came to end on Friday night with the series finale of the Starz swords, sex, and sandals drama. The titular slave-turned-gladiator-turned-rebellion leader was on the verge of killing Roman nemesis Marcus Crassus when he was speared from behind. Carried by trusty sidekick Agron off the battlefield, Spartacus died, but was triumphant in that he was able to see many of the slaves he helped free and protect off to safety.

I spoke with Spartacus, himself, Liam McIntyre for the InsideTV Podcast to get his thoughts on the heartbreaking finale and the fact that Spartacus did not somehow make it out of the show alive. “I love the movie Gladiator,” says McIntyre, “and I just think if he had lived through the end of that it just would have lost so much of the impact of what he was doing. So I’m glad [we] didn’t do that.” McIntyre also wonders how triumphant it would have been to have the man in charge survive when so many others died along the way. “What kind of hero is ending as the guy going, ‘Alright, see ya thousands of dead slaves!’? It just didn’t feel right.”

McIntyre also discusses watching the finale with the man who plays on-screen enemy Caesar, Todd Lasance, (“We couldn’t quite look at each other because by about halfway we were just openly weeping”), how showrunner Steven S. DeKnight handled the brutal on-the-cross death of fan favorite Gannicus (“He’s made what is ultimately a horrible, tragic loss into something of a strange victory”), and his own plans for life post-Spartacus.

It’s a revealing and candid chat that serves as a nice exclamation point to the show. And you can enjoy it by just clicking on the video player below. Also make sure to check out my Q&A with Steven S. DeKnight, in which the Spartacus showrunner breaks down who survived, who died, and why. And for more cool content, follow me on Twitter @DaltonRoss.