Paul Mescal says he has a plan for if Gladiator 2 makes him ‘too famous’

Paul Mescal has revealed ahead of the release of GladiatorII how he intends to balance out any fame that he gains from the film.

The Normal People star, 28, plays Lucius Verus, who is taken prisoner by the Roman army after they invade his home and is forced to fight as a gladiator in Ridley Scott’s Gladiator sequel, alongside Pedro Pascal, Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen, Derek Jacobi and Joseph Quinn.

In a new interview, he talks about the possibility of Gladiator II changing his life in ways he may not be prepared for. “I don’t know what the difference will be,” Mescal told The Times. “Maybe that’s naive? Is it just that more people will stop you in the street? I’d get profoundly depressed if that’s so.”

The Aftersun star goes on to talk about how he may cope if the film brings him a level of popularity that he does not want.

“If the film impacts my life in that way I’ll be in a bad spot. I’d have to move on and do an obtuse play nobody wants to see.”

Paul Mescal in Gladiator II (Paramount Pictures)

In a recent appearance on The Graham Norton Show, the actor talked about the training he underwent for the film, saying: “I was working with a trainer who circled me like a shark and said, ‘There is a canvas to work with.’ He went to town, and I saw him every day. It was fun.”

He did “everything” the trainer asked of him, including eating “a lot of chicken and lifting heavy things”, Mescal said, but when it came to the expectation of giving up drinking and smoking cigarettes, he “drew a line in the sand where those were concerned”.

Set over two decades after the events featured in Scott’s 2000 epic, starring Russell Crowe as Roman General Maximus, whose son Mescal plays in the sequel. Mescal has admitted that he didn’t have the opportunity to speak with Crowe, 60, about his role.

Early critical reactions have come in after the movie’s Los Angeles premiere on October 18, with some critics predicting an Oscar nomination for Denzel Washington, who portrays arms dealer Macrinus.

Gladiator II will be released in theatres in the UK on 15 November and in the US on 22 November.