{"id":2220252,"date":"2026-01-02T20:06:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T20:06:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2220252"},"modified":"2026-01-02T20:06:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T20:06:08","slug":"paul-mescal-hints-at-acting-break-i-dont-think-i-can-go-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/paul-mescal-hints-at-acting-break-i-dont-think-i-can-go-on\/","title":{"rendered":"Paul Mescal hints at acting break: &#8216;I don&#8217;t think I can go on&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F01%2Fpaul-mescal-reveals-wont-movies-118151370.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Paul Mescal is looking to be more like normal people. <\/p>\n<p>The actor, 29, revealed he plans to step away from acting \u2014\u00a0but just for a little while.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m five or six years into this now, and I feel very lucky,\u201d Mescal told<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/film\/2026\/jan\/02\/i-dont-want-to-resent-the-thing-i-love-paul-mescal-and-josh-oconnor-on-romance-rationing-and-retirement\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> \u201cThe Guardian\u201d<\/a> in an interview published on Friday. \u201cBut I\u2019m also learning that I don\u2019t think I can go on doing it as much.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Paul Mescal attends the New York Screening of \u201cHamnet\u201d at Whitby Hotel on November 21, 2025. <span class=\"credit\">WireImage<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Before Mescal makes his great escape from the spotlight, he is set to play Paul McCartney in Sam Mendes\u2019 2028 Beatles movie.<\/p>\n<p>But first, he\u2019s starring in the highly anticipated film \u201cMerrily We Role Along\u201d based on the 1981 musical from Stephen Sondheim and George Furth. <\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cOnce I\u2019ve finished promoting that, I hope nobody gets to see me until 2028 when I\u2019m doing the Beatles,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople will get a break from me and I\u2019ll get a break from them.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Paul Mescal poses with fans upon arrival at the premiere of the film \u201cHamnet\u201d on Oct. 11, 2025. <span class=\"credit\">Alberto Pezzali\/Invision\/AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Mescal landed his breakout role in 2020\u2019s\u00a0\u201cNormal People.\u201d Two years later, he was nominated for an Academy Award for the 2022 drama \u201cAftersun.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Oscars brought the opportunity to celebrate that film in a way that [director] Charlotte [Wells] and myself had never anticipated,\u201d he explained. \u201cYou don\u2019t make something like Aftersun and think: \u2018I know where\u00a0<em>we\u2019ll\u00a0<\/em>be going in 2023!\u2019 I doubt that will ever be topped for me, because it\u2019s not the sort of film that usually gets recognized in that capacity.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Now, Mescal is starring in the indie film\u00a0\u201cHistory of Sound,\u201d where \u201ctwo young men during World War I set out to record the lives, voices and music of their American countrymen,\u201d per the synopsis.   <\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Josh O\u2019Connor, Paul Mescal in \u201cThe History of Sound.\u201d  <span class=\"credit\">\u00a9Focus Features\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Josh O\u2019Connor acts alongside Mescal.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt means learning that films like \u2018The History of Sound\u2019 take more out of the well,\u201d he continued. \u201cYou can\u2019t keep going back and expect to consistently deliver something you\u2019re proud of. What that rationing looks like, I don\u2019t know. I miss being on stage, so I might have a time when I\u2019m only doing theatre for a couple of years. I also have different priorities in my personal life that I want to attend to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While shooting \u201cHistory of Sound,\u201d Mescal was fresh off \u201cGladiator II.\u201d <\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar-Jones in episode two of \u201cNormal People.\u201d  <span class=\"credit\">Hulu<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Paul Mescal in 2023\u2019s \u201cAll of Us Strangers.\u201d  <span class=\"credit\">\u00a9Searchlight Pictures\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI was 90 kilos and I had eight weeks to get down to 78 kilos,\u201d he recalled. \u201cIt was a real headf\u2013k. I loved the process of making that film but \u2018The History of Sound\u2019 felt like home to me. It\u2019s where I\u2019m most comfortable. I want to make more films like that versus ones on the scale of \u2018Gladiator II.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In 2024, Mescal got candid on wanting to <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2024\/11\/13\/entertainment\/paul-mescal-on-the-pressure-to-make-gladiator-ii-a-success\/\">make sure the Ridley Scott sequel was a success<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI do feel the pressure, and I do feel the desire for this to make money,\u201d Mescal\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2024\/film\/news\/paul-mescal-gladiator-2-stunts-hollywood-offers-1236207734\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">told Variety<\/a>\u00a0at the time. \u201cThe box office needs a shot in the arm, and if films like \u2018Gladiator II\u2019 aren\u2019t doing it, it would be concerning. So I do feel a responsibility.\u201d  <\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Paul Mescal in \u201cFoe.\u201d <span class=\"credit\">\u00a9Amazon\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Paul Mescal in \u201cHamnet.\u201d  <span class=\"credit\">\u00a9Focus Features\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The \u201cAll of Us Strangers\u201d actor first watched the 2000 film at age 13.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was at home with my dad,\u201d Mescal said. \u201cI feel like for a lot of dads it was a big film, like, \u2018Come on, son, let\u2019s watch \u2018Gladiator!\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n<p>Choosing to work on \u201cGladiator II\u201d was an easy yes. \u201cIt was really just Ridley and \u2018Gladiator,\u2019 and I felt like I was ripe for this kind of big film,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI played sports growing up; I know what it is to throw myself around. I look Roman,\u201d he continued. \u201cAll of those things. And it\u2019s Ridley Scott!\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Paul Mescal in \u201cGladiator II.\u201d <span class=\"credit\">\u00a9Paramount\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Paul Mescal in \u201cAftersun.\u201d  <span class=\"credit\">Courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The action-packed movie came out more than two decades after the events of the original\u00a0\u201cGladiator.\u201d In the sequel,<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2024\/01\/17\/entertainment\/paul-mescal-will-get-profoundly-depressed-if-gladiator-2-makes-him-more-famous\/\">\u00a0Mescal plays the grown-up\u00a0Lucius Verus II<\/a>, the son of Russell Crowe\u2019s character, Maximus, who ends up forced into slavery and becomes a gladiator to earn his freedom, much like his dad did in the first movie.<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2024\/11\/12\/entertainment\/denzel-washington-announces-hes-retiring-after-next-batch-of-films\/\">Denzel Washington<\/a> portrayed Macrinus, an arms dealer and businessman well-known in the Roman Empire. <\/p>\n<p>Meeting the Oscar winner, 71, was a dream come true for Mescal.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHoly f\u2013k, I\u2019m in a scene with Denzel! It could have been overwhelming,\u201d he reflected, \u201cbut I kind of set out in my head that I\u2019m totally entitled to admire this man and see him as an idol, but I\u2019ve got to protect myself from that when we\u2019re working together. I\u2019ve got to treat Denzel as I would any other actor.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source celebrity.land \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Paul Mescal is looking to be more like normal people. The actor, 29, revealed he plans to step away from acting \u2014\u00a0but just for a little while. \u201cI\u2019m five or six years into this now, and I feel very lucky,\u201d Mescal told \u201cThe Guardian\u201d in an interview published on Friday. \u201cBut I\u2019m also learning that [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2220253,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25174],"tags":[25538,21751,21741,21993,21912,37999],"class_list":["post-2220252","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gossip","tag-actors","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-films","tag-movies","tag-paul-mescal"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Paul-Mescal-hints-at-acting-break-I-dont-think-I.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2220252","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2220252"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2220252\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2220254,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2220252\/revisions\/2220254"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2220253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2220252"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2220252"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2220252"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}