Paul Mescal on his journey from Normal People to Gladiator 2

Along with the likes of Timothée Chalamet and Tom Holland, Paul Mescal is arguably the prototypical Internet Boyfriend. Women and men around the world fell in love with this next generation of glamorous leading men for a perceived sensibility that challenged the tired male narratives that had elevated the careers of previous sex symbols. A “thinking woman’s heartthrob”, Mescal had a cerebral appeal, gaining fame for his portrayal of emotionally complex characters such as Sally Rooney’s Connell. Normal people and Calum in the indie hit After-tan. (The latter earned Paul his first Oscar nomination, his first to date.) But Mescal also has a particularly impressive combination of sensitivity and sensibility. And Kachkovsky abilities. A rugby fan and former Gaelic football player, Mescal toes the line between stereotypical male and female fantasies. Not only does he have rugby shorts, but he looks damn good in them while running errands and (probably) making you a cup of tea in bed.

In fact, it’s these softboy qualities that make Mescal, at least in part, ideal for Next Generation Gladiator. (Perhaps this is what the casting directors took into account when they cast not only Mescal, but also two other Internet guys – Pedro Pascal and Joseph Quinn – in Gladiator continued.) Mezcal in Sydney promotes Gladiator IIhis first move into the action genre. The big screen epic, directed by Ridley Scott, follows Lucius (Mezcal) as he makes his way through the gladiatorial arena and into the politics of the Roman Empire. The film feels like a departure from Mescal, who we haven’t quite seen—or even imagined—expressing the raw fury that the role requires.

Talking to Paul and his Gladiator II co-star Fred Hechinger (from White Lotus fame), I ask Mescal to reflect on the path that led him to his latest career step.

“When I remember Normal peopleand I’m sure you (Hechinger) have the same thing with White Lotusit feels like it was both yesterday and the same as a long time ago,” he says. “And you kind of just get on that train and go to work and hopefully create things that you’re proud of.” It has indeed been a tense five years for Mescal, and he adds that he “didn’t really have time to reflect.”

Since it’s Normal people A breakthrough year in 2020, Mescal continues to release (often multiple) new works each year. In 2021 he continued Lost Daughterfilm starring fresh Oscar winner Olivia Coleman. A year later he directed three feature films: God’s beings, After-tanAnd Carmen. Last year, he directed two more films to his name. Enemyopposite Saoirse Ronan, and We’re all strangersas an amateur Fleabag“hot priest” Andrew Scott. This year is perhaps a slow one, with only one film released.

Perhaps it’s his media diplomacy in practice, but when Paul is asked to make the most of his career, he doesn’t play favorites among his “children.” “It always surprises me when a film gets made at all. Every movie is(Gladiator II) inclusive, they all feel what I think a parent should feel. They all feel like separate children.”

One of Gladiator IIA key theme of the film is the concept of fate, a concept that can be very easy or very difficult to wrestle with if you’re one of the most successful actors of a generation. When I ask if he believes in fate, Mescal replies: “I think I believe in it. In some ways I don’t even know why I believe it, other than the fact that it doesn’t take you out of the present tense. You know, being active in your life and waiting for something passive to happen to you. But I think things have happened in my life that I can’t explain in the past, but maybe they were meant to happen. Or maybe in some cases it shouldn’t have happened.”

While we’re left to wonder what exactly this means for Paul, at this point in his life the Gods are working in his favor.

Gladiator 2 hits theaters on November 14th. Tickets are already on sale.