SHOWBIZ Film Gladiator Denzel Washington says ‘the sky’s the limit’ for Paul Mescal after turn in Gladiator II
By Rachael Davis, PA Entertainment Features Writer
Many cinephiles regard Ridley Scott’s Gladiator as one of their favourite movies. Collecting five Oscars – including Best Picture and Best Actor for its star Russell Crowe – and becoming the second highest grossing film in 2000, the historical epic began a new millennium of filmmaking with an unforgettable story of ambition, corruption, bloodshed and warfare in Ancient Rome.
Now, almost 25 years later, a new generation of cinema-goers are being treated to their own slice of Roman glory as Scott rebuilds the Colosseum for a monumental sequel.
Irish actor Paul Mescal, whose career has gone from strength to strength since he shot to fame in 2020’s TV adaptation of Sally Rooney’s Normal People, seems to begin a new chapter of blockbuster filmmaking as he portrays Lucius – son of Crowe’s Maximus – in Gladiator II.
“When Ridley comes knocking, you just say yes,” says the 28-year-old, who was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar for 2022’s Aftersun.
“It’s definitely been a career highlight for me to watch the way the master’s brain works, and he was incredibly generous about sharing his knowledge and talent with me.”
When we meet Lucius in the sequel, which is set 15 years after Maximus’ death, he’s living with his wife and child in Numidia, far from Rome.When the Roman army invades his home, however, he’s taken prisoner and forced to fight as a gladiator, following in his father’s legendary footsteps.
Angry, exiled, abandoned, Lucius is a lost prince who finds himself wanting to destroy the city that both made him and betrayed him.
Gladiator II marks Mescal’s first foray into action blockbusters – until now, he’s been known for touching, emotional dramas like Aftersun and All Of Us Strangers – but the weight and scale of this undertaking is not lost on him.
“It holds a huge amount of weight for a vast number of people across the world, and the scale of it is huge,” Mescal says.
“It’s not like any other role I’ve played. Going from independent features to a blockbuster studio picture was intimidating, until I realised that acting is acting is acting, regardless of the context.” But it wasn’t just Scott that Mescal impressed – decorated actor Denzel Washington, widely regarded as one of the best actors of his generation, says that “the sky’s the limit” for the Irish star.“I can only imagine the pressure he felt,” says Washington, 69, who plays slave- turned-gladiator mentor Macrinus in the film.
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