“I was a… Lord of the Rings Guy”: Paul Mescal’s Risky Move With Marvel is Something Even Timothée Chalamet Avoided Doing
- Paul Mescal's idea of doing a big budget movie has nothing to do with Marvel.
- Mescal claimed that he was not approached by Marvel and that superhero films are not his thing.
- Timothée Chalamet, on the other hand, did not completely strike down his chances of doing a comic book movie.
Paul Mescal’s rise through the ranks since he stepped into Hollywood is one for the history books. He first gained recognition for his lead role in the 2020 drama miniseries, Normal People. Although that show marked his TV debut, his performance was so good that he not only won a BAFTA TV Award but also earned a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award.
Fast forward to 2024, he is starring in Gladiator II, one of the most anticipated big-budget films of the year. Recently, he has addressed the reports about Marvel approaching him for a role in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. In doing so, he has also expressed his thoughts about starring in a superhero movie, and what he has said is something that even Timothée Chalamet has avoided doing.
Paul Mescal Has No Interest in Doing a Marvel Movie
Paul Mescal‘s stardom has reached new heights with Gladiator II, and as he continues to do press to promote the movie, it is becoming more and more evident that he is not afraid of speaking his mind while also being respectful of other people and their feelings.
So, if there is one thing that fans can rely on Mescal to do besides bringing wonderful characters to life, it is him voicing his honest thoughts about how he feels about certain things. Case in point: he did not hesitate in saying that meeting King Charles was not high on his list of priorities, but also pointed out that he believed it was a huge thing for Ridley Scott.
The Lost Daughter actor has gone and done it once again when Happy, Sad, Confused podcast host Josh Horowitz asked if Marvel Studios had considered him for a part in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, he said that it had not happened and also clarified that he had no interest in doing any such roles.
No, no, no. No [Laughs] I don’t think it’s…I don’t think it’s for me. It’s not for me. I think…I wasn’t brought up watching those films. I wasn’t drawn to them. I was more of a Lord of the Rings guy in that sense. They weren’t films I was drawn to.
While he seemed nervous while answering the question, he also conveyed his message loud and clear: fans might get to see him as a Hobbit sooner than they would see him put on a superhero suit. His taste seems to be slightly different from that of his co-stars like Joe Quinn and Pedro Pascal, both of whom are starring in the Fantastic Four movie. That said, a grounded role like Oswald Cobb in The Penguin might interest Mescal more than a superhero like Batman.
Timothée Chalamet Has Not Completely Ruled Out the Chances of Starring in a Superhero Movie Like Paul Mescal
Timothée Chalamet’s thoughts on doing a superhero movie are not entirely different from Mescal’s, but he also did not completely shun his chances of doing one should a good opportunity present itself. In an interview with The New York Times, he clarified whether or not he would ever do a superhero movie.
Well, Leonardo DiCaprio said to me, ‘No superhero movies, no hard drugs.’ Which I thought was very good. I follow them both! But the movie that made me want to act is a superhero movie, ‘The Dark Knight.’ If the script was great, if the director was great, I’d have to consider it.
DiCaprio has been able to hold his status as an A-list celebrity despite never appearing in a superhero movie so his advice seems understandable. Chalamet too has a great filmography and a star status sans a superhero movie so actors can achieve stardom without doing a comic book movie. Even so, the Dune actor not completely ruling out the possibility of doing one is a move that sounds smarter than Mescal’s to some extent.
