Actor's bold confession: Paul Mescal revealed his intense fear of Pedro Pascal before filming on the 'Gladiator' sequel began

'Gladiator' sequel performer Paul Mescal has opened up about the nervousness and fear during his first interaction with his high-profile collaborator on set, Pedro Pascal, and why the highly anticipated film is causing him "stress".

Here's What We Know

In a recent interview with Esquire before the SAG-AFTRA strike, the actor revealed that he even saw the "The Last of Us" star at the LA airport just before the announcement of his involvement in the film, but was "too afraid to approach him." Mescal said that Pascal eventually approached him himself and "just seemed so genuine; I’m really looking forward to hanging out with him."

In the film, Mescal takes on the lead role of the adult Lucius, portrayed in the original as the young nephew of Commodus, the Roman emperor played by Joaquin Phoenix in the 2000 film. The "Normal People" star previously told The Hollywood Reporter that he didn't have to audition for the role. He simply met with acclaimed director Ridley Scott, who discussed the parameters of the story. And then, Mescal was simply given the script.

However, the production is now on hold due to the ongoing double strikes. But director Ridley Scott had managed to shoot about half of the sequel, which started shooting in June, before they had to suspend the process.

Mescal was unable to share many details about the "Gladiator" sequel because he was afraid he might say something he shouldn't.

"I can’t tell you how stressed I am talking about that film in particular, because it’s definitely the biggest one I’ve done. I feel really excited, but, like, it’s difficult to get away from the legacy of the film a bit. I think it’s really well written and it pays homage to the first one, but it’s very much something that I think I can step into and make comfortably my own."

The actor also admitted that he has not spoken to original 'Gladiator' star Russell Crowe.

"I don’t know what we would talk about. Like, I’d love to hear his stories from filming, but the character is, like, totally separate."," he explained.

When We Can Expect It

The Gladiator sequel, which also stars Connie Nielsen, Denzel Washington and Joseph Quinn, has a tentative release date of 24 November 2024.