Paul Mescal has admitted he’s “stressed” after taking on his biggest role to date.
The Maynooth native is reportedly set to play Lucius, the grown-up son of Lucilla, in the upcoming Gladiator sequel.
Speaking to Esquire UK, the 27-year-old admitted: “I can’t tell you how stressed I am talking about that film in particular because it’s definitely the biggest one I’ve done.”
“I feel really excited but it’s difficult to get away from the legacy of the film a bit,” Paul continued.
“I think it’s really well written and it pays homage to the first one, but it’s very much something that I think I can step into and make comfortably my own.”
The Irish actor also opened up about his experience with on-set anxiety, admitting: “It’s the worst feeling!”
“You fly to a new country and figure out who’s there, and then you panic in your bedroom about being social, and then you kind of let that go.”
“I tend to hang out by myself for a bit until I get my feet on the ground with the work itself,” Paul admitted. “I think that’s the best way to do it, rather than force intimacy that doesn’t exist yet.”
Deadline previously reported that Paul will play Lucius in Gladiator 2, while his fellow Irish actor Barry Keoghan had been in negotiations to play Emperor Geta.
Unfortunately, the publication later reported that Barry had been forced to pull out of the highly anticipated sequel entirely due to scheduling conflicts.
Gladiator 2, which is set for a 2024 release, already has a star-studded cast – including Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Joseph Quinn and Connie Nielson.
Connie will reprise her role from the first film and play Lucius [Paul Mescal]’s mother, while it’s been reported that Derek Jacobi will reprise his role as Gracchus.
Meanwhile May Calamawy, Lior Raz, Peter Mensah and Matt Lucas are also rumoured cast members.
The first Gladiator film was released in 2000, and raked in a massive £460 million at the box office.
It also scooped five Academy Awards – including Best Picture and Best Actor.
