Paul Mescal recently talked about how he was playing against type with his role in Gladiator II during his monologue as Saturday Night Live host, complete with a montage of him sobbing in a selection of his usual emotionally wrought dramas. However, there certainly seems to be some typecasting going on when it comes to his name, as his Gladiator II director Ridley Scott recently let it slip that the Irish actor will be portraying one of the foremost Pauls of all time — with the same surname initial, even!
According to Scott, Mescal will be portraying Paul McCartney in the upcoming series of Beatles biopics directed by Sam Mendes.
UPDATE (12/11, 17:00 p.m. ET): Variety is now reporting that, according to sources close to the production, Mescal "is indeed attached to the project." The actor has not officially signed up yet, though, and despite the speculation about his portrayal of McCartney, his role has not yet been confirmed.
As The Hollywood Reporter reports, while in conversation with Christopher Nolan at the Directors Guild of America yesterday (December 10), Scott said that his next feature will be the thriller The Dog Stars. Nolan asked him if Mescal would be in the film, since he's been rumoured to be attached to the project, and Scott admitted that the actor's schedule may prevent them from reuniting.
"Yes," Scott replied of whether Mescal would star in The Dog Stars, before backtracking, "Maybe. Paul is actually stacked up, doing the Beatles next. So I may have to let him go."
While there has been no official confirmation yet, Mescal has been among the actors rumoured to be in consideration to play a member of the Fab Four — alongside Barry Keoghan, Harris Dickinson, Joseph Quinn, Charlie Rowe and the like — since the films were announced. Last month, Ringo Starr himself said that Keoghan had been cast to play him.
In light of the rumours, Mescal was asked what it would be like to play Macca during a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight. "It would be an incredible story to be attached to," the actor said. "The fact that Sam Mendes is attached to direct, like truly, it would be a dream come true." When asked if it was indeed happening, though, Mescal refused to confirm: "No, no, no — we're not going there."