See a first look at Rome’s power couple in the “Spartacus” successor series.

Hail, Caesar! Spartacus creator on recasting key role for House of Ashur and bringing ‘sex, drugs, and destruction’ (exclusive)

See a first look at Rome's power couple in the "Spartacus" successor series.

By Nick Romano

Nick is an entertainment journalist based in New York, NY. If you like pugs and the occasional blurry photo of an action figure, follow him on Twitter @NickARomano.

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Published on July 22, 2025 11:30AM EDT

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Julius Caesar (Jackson Gallagher), Cornelia (Jaime Slater), and Hilara (Jamaica Vaughan) in 'Spartacus: House of Ashur'. Credit:

Once *Spartacus* creator Steven DeKnight decided to resurrect Nick E. Tarabay's character for a *House of Ashur* successor drama, he needed another key figure to return. The only problem was, that person was unavailable.

In the years since portraying Julius Caesar on the gladiator Starz series that ran for three seasons starting in 2010, actor Todd Lasance landed a leading role on *NCIS: Sydney*.

"We went 'round and 'round trying to get our schedules to align, but they were shooting basically at the same time we were," DeKnight shares with **. "It broke all of our hearts, including his. We're crazy happy for him. We just really wished he could have come back. I know he wanted to do it, but, yeah, that's the problem with too much success."

So now *Spartacus: House of Ashur*, premiering on Starz this fall, will feature another Aussie actor, Jackson Gallagher, in the Caesar role, as seen in EW's exclusive first look at the character. (Gallagher also happened to have a role on *NCIS: Sydney*, though it was a one-off.)

Jackson Gallagher as Julius Caesar and Jaime Slater as Cornelia in 'Spartacus: House of Ashur'.

"What I didn't realize, and I think most common people who didn't study, deeply, ancient Rome, is that at this point in Caesar's life, he's not the Caesar that we come to know," DeKnight says. "He's not that all powerful, the guy who became dictator of Rome."

According to DeKnight, Crassus is the richest man in the capital at the story of *Spartacus: House of Ashur*. However, he's not so good with people, so Gallagher's Caesar is essentially his mouthpiece, while fulfilling his less-coveted job in the Republic of maintaining the highway that leads to the city. "What makes [Caesar] special at this point in history," DeKnight points out, "is who he's married to."

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Jaime Slater, who's married to DeKnight in real life and gave the showrunner the confidence to pitch the *House of Ashur* concept, plays Cornelia Cinna, Caesar's wife. Cornelia is the daughter of Lucius Cornelius Cinna, who's a major player in the Republic.

DeKnight provides the historical context. "A few years before our story starts, [Lucius], for all intents and purposes, fought off another guy trying to take over Rome," he explains. "He was one of the most powerful figures in Rome. Cut to Caesar marries his daughter. They deeply, deeply love each other, but the cool thing about Cornelia is she's way richer than Caesar. In fact, she's basically funding Caesar in his life, and her name is much bigger than Julius Caesar. So everyone's all a flutter to meet Cornelia Cinna."

The showrunner describes the duo as the Sid and Nancy of ancient Rome, referring to the romance of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen. "For them, sex, drugs, and destruction are their calling card," DeKnight continues. "They have these vast sensual appetites that are only exceeded by their mutual thirst for power. And these two will maneuver, manipulate, and murder anyone who gets in their way."

For DeKnight, the character of Cornelia was his "entry point" into this aspect of *Spartacus: House of Ashur*. In a brutally patriarchal society where women had no rights in the Republic, this was a woman with status and influence. There are clear parallels between the upper and lower echelons of the season's story; DeKnight previously revealed the arrival of the first gladiatrix (female gladiator), who's trying to fight for her place alongside the men in Ashur's gladiator school.

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"They are co-conspirators," DeKnight says of Caesar and Cornelia. "They are working 100 percent together. She wants to use all of her money and her influence in her name to help him rise. In her mind, and Caesar certainly agrees, he's the guy that should be taking over Rome."

If you consider historical fact to be spoilers, don't Google "Julius Caesar."**

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Source: “AOL TV”