Denzel Washington appeared starstruck as he shook hands with King Charles III at the Gladiator II premiere at London’s Leicester Square. The King, attending the screening at the Odeon Luxe Theatre solo on the eve of his 76th birthday, spoke with director Sir Ridley Scott, 86, and members of the cast on the red carpet.

Paul Mescal previously revealed to Entertainment Weekly that a forehead kiss he gave Pedro Pascal was also scrapped from the film.

Denzel Washington revealed that his same-sex kissing scene was taken out of the final cut of Gladiator II. During a recent interview with Gayety about the historical epic, Washington was asked, “How gay is the Roman Empire?