- Paul Mescal may be on his way up in Hollywood, but he hasn’t forgotten his roots
- The actor says he is ‘proud’ of where he comes from, and ‘hopes people see that’
- Mescal is the star of Ridley Scott’s latest movie, Gladiator II
He’s on his ascent into Hollywood’s A-List.
But Paul Mescal isn’t getting too big for his boots.
The actor, 28, is currently on the press tour for his movie Gladiator II, in which he stars alongside Pedro Pescal and Denzel Washington.
And while the Ridley Scott-directed film is premiering across the world – and will be released in US theaters on November 22 – Mescal is as humble as ever.
Fans flooded to catch a glimpse of Mescal at the Irish premiere of Gladiator II, which took place at the Light House Cinema in Smithfield, Dublin.
After the craziness of the crowds, Mescal sat down for an interview with Irish radio station Newstalk – and revealed he was “really proud”.
“I think it would be insane to assume that was going to happen,” said the Oscar nominee. “Like, it would be crazy leaving the hotel and being like, ‘That’s what Smithfield’s going to look like because I’m coming to premiere.’
“If that was happening, I’d need a good, solid gut check and a slap on the wrist. So I’m honestly delighted that’s how my body responds to that, because I think it would make me nervous if that wasn’t true.”
When told that Irish people were rooting for him, Mescal – who hails from Maynooth – was pleased the public can see how much he “loves” his hometown.
“I think it helps that I do actually love the place that I come from, and I think if people see anything, I hope they see that,” he admitted. “I hope that the version I present in the world is the version that my friends and family know. I don’t preach to be a role model or anything like that, but I’m proud of where I come from, and what you see, I hope, is what you get.
“I think it’s a dangerous avenue to go down when you start becoming precious about how you are in the world. You hope to be dignified and all of those things, but you’ve also got to realize that to be an actor, you’ve got to live your life outside it as well. It’s just a better way to live as well.”
‘That would be mad!’
Later in the interview, it was noted that Mescal doesn’t look as “tired” as usual.
“That’s mad,” he laughed. “I’m more tired now than I think I’ve ever been.”
While he may not have had a break from work, Mescal isn’t complaining.
“What am I going to do – turn around to Ridley and be like, ‘No, I can’t do Gladiator because I’m tired’? That would be f***ing mad,” he joked.
And he’s not wrong – as this week alone, two new projects for the actor have been hinted at.
Mescal is reportedly in talks with Scott again, this time to work on an adaptation of The Dog Stars.
Based on Peter Heller’s acclaimed post-apocalyptic novel, sources say that Mescal is in talks to play Hig, a widowed pilot and one of the few survivors in a world devastated by a global pandemic.
And the star is also set to reprise his role as Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire.
Mescal first took on the part in London’s West End back in 2022 – and the play will once more be starting in the UK capital for a limited run between February 3-22, before heading to Brooklyn for its US premiere.
