In a recent interview, Paul Mescal was asked if he’ll ever stop doing the “sad roles” he’s played in projects like Normal People and All of Us Strangers. The 29-year-old Irish actor replied that he’s not necessarily done with sad roles. Interestingly, Mescal will play William Shakespeare in the intensely emotional tear-jerker, Hamnet. Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao helms the project, with star actors Jessie Buckley, Joe Alwyn, and Emily Watson in important roles.
Paul Mescal on if he’ll continue to take on movies like Normal People and All of Us Strangers
In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Paul Mescal revealed whether he intends to do more “sad roles” or not. The 29-year-old Irish actor shot to fame with the 2020 romance drama limited series Normal People, opposite Daisy Edgar-Jones.
Since then, Mescal has played emotionally intense characters in All of Us Strangers, The History of Sound, and now, Hamnet. The 29-year-old actor previously revealed to Vanity Fair that he was considering moving away from playing such intensely emotional characters. However, Mescal clarified his statement to PEOPLE at a recent Hamnet event. The Aftersun star quipped, “Don’t ever quote me on the things that I quote myself on.”
Continuing further, he stated, “I think we can get used to kind of compartmentalizing actors into, ‘Oh, they do comedy, or they do drama, or they do one thing or another.’ I just hope to keep making work that feels honest to me, and this film (Hamnet) feels very truthful.”
The Oscar nominee portrays famed playwright William Shakespeare in Chloé Zhao’s Hamnet. The film details Shakespeare (Mescal) and his wife Agnes’ marriage (Jessie Buckley) after the loss of their son, Hamnet. Mescal remarked, “The only reason that this film is sad is because there’s real joy and levity in it in the first half of the film, and I think it’s kind of a bigger point.”
Originally reported by Anwaya Mane on Mandatory.
