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Paul Mescal
Mescal in October 2021
Born	(1996-02-02) 2 February 1996 (age 28) Maynooth, Ireland
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2017–present

Paul Mescal (/ˈmɛskəl/; born 2 February 1996) is an Irish actor.

After studying acting at The Lir Academy and performing in plays around Dublin, Mescal rose to fame with his role in the miniseries Normal People (2020), for which he won a BAFTA TV Award and earned a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award. He then made his film debut with a supporting role in the psychological drama The Lost Daughter (2021) and received praise for starring in the drama films Aftersun (2022) and God's Creatures (2022). His performance in Aftersun earned him nominations for an Academy Award and BAFTA Film Award. He began performing as Stanley Kowalski in a revival of the play A Streetcar Named Desire in 2022, receiving a nomination for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor.

Early life

Mescal was born on 2 February 1996 in Maynooth, the son of police officer Dearbhla and school teacher Paul. His father also acted semi-professionally. He has a younger brother and sister. He attended Maynooth Post Primary School. He was a minor and under-21 Gaelic football player for Kildare and a member of the Maynooth GAA club. He received support from Gaelic footballers Brian Lacey, who praised his defending skills, and Cian O'Neill, who described him as "mature beyond his years" and "very developed and very strong". He abandoned the sport after a jaw injury. He performed on stage for the first time at the age of 16, portraying the title character in the musical The Phantom of the Opera, after which he successfully auditioned for The Lir Academy at Trinity College Dublin. He graduated with a BA in Acting in 2017, having secured an agent for his acting career prior to his graduation.

Career

Upon graduating, Mescal was offered roles in the theatre productions Angela's Ashes and The Great Gatsby. He chose the latter and starred as the titular Jay Gatsby at the Gate Theatre in Dublin. The Irish Times Peter Crawley highlighted his work as a "butterfly of self-creation among an ensemble in constant motion and fluttering improvisation". He also portrayed the Prince in a contemporary retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's The Red Shoes at the same theatre that year. Mescal appeared in the world premiere of the 2018 play Asking for It by Louise O'Neill at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin; Steve Cummins of The Times commended his distinctive performance. That same year, Mescal made his London stage debut in The Plough and the Stars at the Lyric Hammersmith and starred in the Rough Magic Theatre Company's productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream for the Kilkenny Arts Festival and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man for the Dublin Theatre Festival. In 2020, he performed in the play The Lieutenant of Inishmore at Dublin's Gaiety Theatre.

Mescal starred in his first television role in the drama miniseries Normal People, an adaptation of the 2018 novel of the same name by Sally Rooney. It premiered in the UK on BBC Three and in the US on Hulu in 2020. He played student Connell Waldron; he viewed the role as different from himself in the way Waldron's traits include hesitance and emotional unavailability. Like the actor did in real life, the character plays Gaelic football and attends Trinity College. The role propelled Mescal to fame. He earned acclaim as well as the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor for his performance. In their respective reviews for Variety and Slate, Caroline Framke called Mescal's navigation through the character's emotional collapse "breathtaking", while Willa Paskin noted his concurrent embodiment of "intelligence, insecurity and quiet confidence". He also received nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie and the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Movie/Miniseries.

Mescal starred in Drifting, a short film, which was screened at the 2020 Galway Film Fleadh. He played a firefighter in the Channel 5 miniseries The Deceived and appeared in the music video for the song "Scarlet" by The Rolling Stones in August. Reviewing The Deceived, The Independent critic Ed Power highlighted Mescal's effortless "sleepy-eyed charm" and "flawless" Donegal accent.

Mescal made his feature film debut with a supporting role in The Lost Daughter, directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal in her directorial debut. Released in 2021, the psychological drama garnered favourable reviews. The following year, Mescal starred as a man accused of sexual assault in the psychological drama God's Creatures and as a troubled young father in the drama Aftersun, both of which premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. The two films received positive reviews, with Mescal's performances gaining praise. IndieWire critic Kate Erbland found Mescal's work in God's Creatures "powerful" and "quietly chilling". Reviewing Aftersun, Peter Travers of ABC News highlighted his "disarming charm and elemental power" in his portrayal of a "complex role". He received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actor and the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for the latter.

Mescal starred in Carmen, a contemporary film adaptation of the opera of the same name. It premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival and will be theatrically released in 2023. He began playing Stanley Kowalski in a revival of the play A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams at the Almeida Theatre in December 2022. The production garnered acclaim The Times's Dominic Maxwell found Mescal "tremendous" and opined that he "makes the latent violence of Stanley Kowalski into something easy, tangible, vibrant yet unactorly", and Mescal has received a nomination for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor. The production is scheduled to transfer to the West End in March 2023.

Mescal will next star in Foe, an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Iain Reid, and in Strangers, an adaptation of Taichi Yamada's novel of the same name. He replaced Blake Jenner in the lead role of composer Franklin Shepard in Richard Linklater's Merrily We Roll Along, a film adaptation of the 1981 musical of the same name, which is set be filmed over 20 years.

Personal life

Mescal is fluent in both English and Irish. He relocated to London in 2020. He stated in 2022 that he had purchased a property in his native Ireland, intending to spend time there when not working. He has been open about seeing a therapist and has said he does so "to keep sane".

A keen pianist, Mescal has performed covers of songs with his sister. In July 2020, he performed a spoken word piece and sang with Irish singer Dermot Kennedy during a livestreamed show at London's Natural History Museum. Three months later, he participated in a virtual stage reading of Kenneth Lonergan's play This Is Our Youth to benefit the Actors Fund of America charity.

Mescal was in a relationship with American singer Phoebe Bridgers from early 2020 until an unknown date in 2022. During this time, he appeared in the music video for Bridgers' song "Savior Complex", which was directed by English actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

Filmography

Film

Gladiator 2 (Pre-Production)

Television

Music videos

Theatre

Accolades

References

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18. ^ Cummins, Steve (17 November 2018). "Review: Asking For It at Abbey Theatre, Dublin". The Times. Archived from the original on 17 November 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2020. Paul Mescal delivers a standout performance as Bryan, Emma's sympathetic brother.
19. ^ Crawley, Peter (4 August 2018). "It's a kind of magic: electric midsummer night's dreams in Kilkenny Castle". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 4 August 2018. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
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23. Holmes, Linda (29 April 2020). "Review: 'Normal People' Skillfully Adapts Sally Rooney's Novel". NPR. Archived from the original on 29 April 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
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26. Garner, Dwight; Poniewozik, James; Sehgal, Parul; Szalai, Jennifer (15 May 2020). "Bringing 'Normal People' to Sexy, Soundtracked Life". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 4 January 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
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28. Framke, Caroline (22 April 2020). "'Normal People' Review: Hulu's Sally Rooney Adaptation is Bruising". Variety. Archived from the original on 20 January 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
29. Paskin, Willa (24 April 2020). "Normal People, Hulu's swoony adaptation of Sally Rooney's novel, reviewed". Slate. Archived from the original on 6 January 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
30. Villarreal, Yvonne (28 July 2020). "Emmys 2020: Paul Mescal of 'Normal People' on his nomination". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 29 July 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
31. Schneider, Michael (18 January 2021). "'Ozark,' 'The Crown' and Netflix Lead 26th Annual Critics' Choice Awards TV Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on 18 January 2021. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
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33. ^ Carr, Flora (4 August 2020). "The Deceived's creators: 'There was a buzz about Paul Mescal – but no one predicted this'". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
34. ^ Greene, Andy (6 August 2020). "Watch the New Rolling Stones Video 'Scarlet,' Starring Paul Mescal". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 20 January 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
35. Power, Ed (4 August 2020). "The Deceived review: Paul Mescal conjures his sleepy-eyed charm in this silly and likeable caper". The Independent. Archived from the original on 5 July 2021. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
36. ^ Galuppo, Mia (28 August 2020). "'Normal People' Breakout Paul Mescal Joins Maggie Gyllenhaal Directorial Debut 'The Lost Daughter' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 28 August 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
37. Goldsmith, Jill (17 December 2021). "'The Lost Daughter,' 'The Novice,' 'The Tender Bar' Open Into 'Spider-Man' Maelstrom, Covid Jitters – Specialty Preview". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
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51. ^ Donnelly, Matt (30 June 2022). "Andrew Scott, Paul Mescal, Claire Foy and Jamie Bell Join Andrew Haigh's Next Movie 'Strangers'". Variety. Archived from the original on 30 June 2022. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
52. ^ Sneider, Jeff (9 January 2023). "Exclusive: Paul Mescal Replaces Blake Jenner in Richard Linklater's 20-Year Movie Merrily We Roll Along". AboveTheLine. Archived from the original on 9 January 2023. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
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56. Corcoran, Mark (31 July 2020). "Normal People star Paul Mescal and sister Nell show off amazing talent in incredible duet". Irish Mirror. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
57. Hodgkinson, Will (31 July 2020). "Dermot Kennedy and Paul Mescal review — an atmospheric and imaginative livestream show". The Times. Archived from the original on 31 July 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
58. Evans, Greg (7 October 2020). "Morgan Freeman, Laurie Metcalf, Ellen Burstyn, Laura Linney, Matthew Broderick Among All-Star Lineup For Virtual Broadway Play Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 12 October 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
59. Carroll, Rory (26 January 2023). "Paul Mescal's latest role: global film star". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2 February 2023. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
60. ^ Savage, Mark (1 December 2020). "Paul Mescal stars in Phoebe Bridgers' music video for Savior Complex". BBC News. Archived from the original on 1 December 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2020.

External links

• Paul Mescal at IMDb

• 1996 births
• 21st-century Irish male actors
• Alumni of Trinity College Dublin
• Best Actor BAFTA Award (television) winners
• Gaelic football backs
• Irish expatriates in England
• Irish male stage actors
• Irish male television actors
• Irish male film actors
• Kildare Gaelic footballers
• Living people
• Male actors from County Kildare
• People associated with Trinity College Dublin
• People from Maynooth