Spartacus
Played by Kirk Douglas, Spartacus is a proud and intelligent man who is sentenced to fight as a gladiator for his uncooperative nature. After being trained and realizing that the life of a gladiator wasn't suitable for him, Sparatcus escapes his captors and starts an uprising with his fellow slaves. Driven and commited, Spartacus launched what would later be known as the Third Servile War. After the war, Spartacus escapes to Italy.
Crassus
Played by Laurence Oliver, Crassus the antagonist of the story and is a cruel and power-hungry Roman senator. Although already rich and somewhat powerful, Crassus hasn't had the opportunity to showcase his tremendous ambition. He doesn't, that is, until he is given the opportunity to quell the rebellion led by Spartacus.
Varinia
Played by Jean Simmons, Varinia is the woman with whom Spartacus starts a quiet relationship. When she is sent to "entertain" Spartacus in his cell, he refuses to have sex with her. Throught the film, she is bought by several people and then becomes the pawn of several people in order to get to the rebellious Spartacus.
Gracchus
Played by Charles Laughton, Gracchus is Crassus' angry yet smart opponent who hopes that Crassus will not use his multipule defeats at the hands of Spartacus and his army to seize control of the Roman Republic and its army. In an attempt to circumvent the ambitious Crassus, Gracchus trys to channel all of the military power of the Republic to his protégé Julius Caesar. However, Gracchus made a terrible mistake, mistaking the intentions of the young senator Caesar. Ultimately, Gracchus was an integral figure in the creation of the now infamous Roman Empire and kills himself for brining rise to tyranny.
Julius Caesar
Played by John Gavin, Julius Caesar is a young senator who the aforementioned Gracchus hands an enormous amount of power to. A smart and ambitious man and a brilliant military tactician, Caesar went on to be the first emporer of Rome.
