Paul Mescal’s Excruciating ‘Gladiator 2’ Training Made Him Unlock a Very Dangerous Side of Himself
- Paul Mescal had intense training for 'Gladiator 2', transforming himself both physically and mentally.
- To understand his character's situation, Mescal used his training to enter into a violent mindset.
- Mescal also faced the pressure of performing alongside industry icons like Denzel Washington.
Some roles in movies require more than an actor’s skills. They sometimes call for complete transformation, both physically and mentally. Actors are often seen going through extreme weight changes and getting involved in intense method acting to bring authenticity to their characters.
One such transformation happened in Gladiator 2, starring Paul Mescal as Lucius. The actor, who is mostly known for his indie projects, entered the world of commercial filmmaking with a role that encouraged him to try out things that he had not done before, both physically and psychologically.
Paul Mescal’s Transformation for Gladiator 2
The story of Gladiator 2 focuses on Maximus and Lucilla’s son, Lucius, played by Paul Mescal, who becomes a gladiator after Roman soldiers kill his family. The film is directed by Ridley Scott and features Pedro Pascal, Denzel Washington, and Connie Nielsen in important roles.
In an interview with Empire (via Men’s Health), Mescal revealed his routine of 45 minutes of training, six times a week. “I always had a kind of latent ambition to do something that was more muscular and physical,” he explained. The actor also wanted to “avoid” stereotypically chiseled superhero physiques, as he believes “superheroes don’t exist, but gladiators did.”
According to GQ, Mescal added 18 pounds of muscle. His training sessions ranged between 40 and 90 minutes. Moreover, the diet also turned out to be difficult for him in the process. Mescal told GQ,
I don’t have a massive appetite, so trying to eat two massive f*cking boxes of mince [ground beef] and sweet potato hash between a matinee and an evening show was not fun.
However, Mescal used his intense physical training and challenges to enter into a dark psychological realm. In an interview with The Movie Podcast, he shared,
The training helped me get into a psychology around that kind of violence, ’cause we’re not used to. Thankfully we live in a society, especially in the countries that we’re from, where we don’t really confront like tapping into anger or violence or anything like that. And the training was kind of an avenue for me to kind of get into that headspace where violence is a tool necessary to survive.
In the Empire interview, Mescal expressed his wonder about how the Gladiators took that level of violence within a sporting setting. That’s where his preparation went beyond a typical transformation in order to get into the psychology of his character.
Paul Mescal’s Challenges Beyond Physical Transformation
Gladiator 2 was not just a physical challenge for Mescal. The young actor had to perform in front of some of the biggest names in the industry and his first meeting with Denzel Washington proves how vulnerable he felt initially.
On The Graham Norton Show (via BBC), Mescal confessed that he avoided Washington for a whole day because of his nervousness. He said,
I was stood at the bottom of the steps, and I stood there for a couple of minutes, and I said, ‘Not today.’ So I bailed out and I ran to my dressing room — like, ‘Tomorrow I’m going to be a brave boy.’
Washington later praised Mescal’s performance, stating on the show, “This kid delivered.” However, Mescal was very aware of the fact that the true challenge lies beyond his physicality. On The Movie Podcast, he confessed,
I say this with the most respect, like, I think fundamentally it’s just if you’re going to play Gladiator, you got to go to the gym. Like that’s it’s just so…With the most respect, it’s the least interesting part about the film for me, because it just is you go to the gym, you lift your weights, you eat chicken… actually it requires discipline and it requires attention, but it’s not hard work. It’s not as hard as say kind of the pressure of like scenes with Denzel or scenes with Connie.
Fans can hope to see Paul Mescal’s physical transformation as well as his capability of sharing the screen with some of Hollywood’s biggest icons with his upcoming career milestone movie.
Gladiator 2 will be released in theaters on November 22, 2024, in the USA.
