He’s earned critical acclaim and award nominations for performances in “Aftersun” and “Normal People.” Now, Irish actor Paul Mescal, who’s become a Gen Z heartthrob, is front-and-center of Ridley Scott’s epic “Gladiator II.”
Walking through the streets of Dublin, Paul Mescal said, “There’s this weird sensation about landing into the city – I don’t know, it just makes me feel calm.”
The Irish actor was not going to get much of that calm on this stop, attending the Dublin premiere of “Gladiator II.” He was here to promote the highly-anticipated film. “There’s a little bit of really enjoying it, but part of it also hanging on for dear life”, he said. “Just the size is something that I haven’t experienced before. I also just haven’t led a huge amount of films.”
In “Gladiator II”, he plays Lucius, who learns (along with the audience) of his connection to Russell Crowe’s character from the original 2000 blockbuster. Nearly 25 years later, director Ridley Scott is back with the sequel, out this week.
What was it like for Mescal to be in the middle of such an epic film? “I would say equally epic”, he replied.
The 28-year-old has already been nominated for an Oscar, playing a single dad in “Aftersun”, and an Emmy for his role in “Normal People.” Aside from the critical acclaim, that series turned him into a Gen Z heartthrob practically overnight.
Ridley Scott says he was so impressed with Mescal that he cast the young actor after just a 30-minute zoom call.
“I got a phone call and they were like, ‘You’re going to be in “Gladiator II”,'” Mescal recalled. “That’s kind of massively life-altering news to receive.”
It’s that big? “Yeah, of course it is”, Mescal said.
