Paul Mescal met King Charles III recently, and has since admitted he wasn't overly impressed. The King attended the London premiere of Ridley Scott's long-awaited Gladiator II starring Paul on 13th November, and he spoke to members of the film's cast and crew.
Asked a few days later about what it was like meeting the monarch, Paul told Variety: "It’s definitely not something that was on the bingo cards. I’m, like, Irish, so it’s not kind of on the list of priorities."
Although he didn't elaborate further, Paul is originally from Maynooth in County Kildare and Ireland and Britain have had a long and complicated history, particularly with regards to the monarchy and ruling classes. Ireland was under British rule for some 700 years, as per the BBC, and the nation officially became the Irish Free State in 1922 following the Irish War of Independence.
Though Paul wasn't the most enthusiastic about his royal meeting, he also wasn't dismissive, and realised how much it meant to his director on Gladiator II. He continued: "But it's an amazing thing for Ridley, because I know how important that is for him. So, to see his film celebrated in that context was pretty special."
When the reporter pressed Paul on what he and Charles chatted about, the actor admitted: "You just kind of nod along and... I found it hard to hear exactly what he was saying, because your head is in such a kind of... so you're just kind of nodding along and just smiling."
Paul Mescal on meeting King Charles: "I'm Irish, so it's not on the list of priorities. But it's an amazing thing for Ridley [Scott] because I know how important that is for him." pic.twitter.com/AR60LJ0V4ZNovember 19, 2024
Gladiator II has been in cinemas since 15 November, and its release comes 24 years after the release of Gladiator. It has received mixed reviews so far, with Brian Orndorf at blu-ray.com wrote that 'the staleness of Gladiator II is difficult to ignore' while William Bibbiani at TheWrap concluded his review with the following: "All I am left with are the words of Emperor Commodus: 'It vexes me. I’m terribly vexed.'
However, others have thoroughly enjoyed the return of the franchise, with The Guardian giving it four stars and calling it "a gobsmacking reboot".
