Paul Mescal and Pedro Pascal, both of whom are set to star in ‘Gladiator 2.'.Photo:Lionel Hahn/Getty; Jon Kopaloff/Getty
Lionel Hahn/Getty; Jon Kopaloff/Getty
The 27-year-old Irish actor may be gearing up to play a combat-heavy role inGladiator 2but off-screen he doesn’t battle in gladiator rings — he wrestles with nerves.
In a newly-published interview withEsquire, conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike, Mescal revealed that upon encounteringPedro Pascal— his costar in the long-awaited followup toRidley Scott’s 2000 historical drama — he was “too afraid to go up to him.”
Thankfully, Pascal, 48, was not, and approached theAftersunstar when they crossed paths at the LAX airport.
“He came up and just seemed so genuine,” Mescal said ofThe Last of Usstar, adding that he is “really looking forward to hanging out with him.”
Pedro Pascal, who is set to star in ‘Gladiator 2’ in an unspecified role.FilmMagic/FilmMagic
FilmMagic/FilmMagic
While Pascal’s role is still a mystery, Mescal is set to play leading role Lucius, the son of the originalGladiator’s Lucilla (Connie Nielsen) and nephew of villain Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), who grows to idolize Maximus (Russell Crowe) as he fights in Rome’s gladiator rings throughout the movie.
The actor — who catapulted to fame in 2020 following his starring role inNormal Peopleas sweet, shy heartthrob Connell — also revealed that he has not yet spoken with Crowe, the face ofGladiator.
“I don’t know what we would talk about,” he toldEsquire.
The Oscar nominee added that he would “love to hear” Crowe’s stories from filming but said that their characters are “totally separate.”
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Mescal nabbed hisGladiator 2role in a slightly unconventional way.
“He played Stanley, and there are several moments where he takes off his shirt and it was electric,” Cercek told the outlet, noting that “the ladies in the audience were very vocal.”
“We were like, ‘I think we’ve found our guy,’” she said.
Paul Mescal, who is set to star in ‘Gladiator 2’ as Lucius.Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty
Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty
Mescal told hostJimmy Kimmelthat he was sharing a dressing room with two castmates when they heard a knock on the door while they were changing.
“We thought it was the stage manager or something and I go to open the door,” the actor recalled. “It’s Nicole Kidman, and I’mstanding there in, like, sweaty underwear.”
According to Mescal, he didn’t even know Kidman, 56, was at the show.
“You’d think the next smart step is [to] put on some trousers, but there’s something incredibly undignified about the act of [pulling up pants],” he continued.
“It’s not a look you want to be caught in, [bending] over.”
source: people.com
