Paul Mescal facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Paul Mescal
Mescal in 2022
Born	Paul Colm Michael Mescal (1996-02-02) 2 February 1996 (age 29) Maynooth, County Kildare, Ireland
Alma mater	Trinity College, Dublin (BA)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2017–present
Relatives	Nell Mescal (sister)
Awards	Full list

Paul Mescal (born on February 2, 1996) is a talented actor from Ireland. He has won several important awards, including two BAFTA Awards and a Laurence Olivier Award. He was also nominated for an Academy Award and a Primetime Emmy Award.

Paul grew up in Maynooth, Ireland. He studied acting at The Lir Academy and then performed in plays in Dublin. He became very famous for his main role in the TV show Normal People in 2020. This role earned him a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award.

After his TV success, Paul started acting in movies. Some of his films include The Lost Daughter (2021), God's Creatures (2022), and All of Us Strangers (2023). He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the movie Aftersun (2022). Paul also took on big action roles, like in the historical film Gladiator II (2024).

On stage, he played Stanley Kowalski in a play called A Streetcar Named Desire in London in 2022. For this role, he won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor.

Early Life and School

Paul Colm Michael Mescal was born on February 2, 1996. His mother, Dearbhla, was a police officer, and his father, Paul, was a schoolteacher who also acted. Paul is the oldest of three children. He has a brother and a sister.

Paul went to Maynooth Post Primary School. He was a very good Gaelic football player for Kildare and played for his local club, Maynooth GAA. People who coached him said he was very skilled and strong. Paul stopped playing football after he hurt his jaw.

He first acted on stage when he was 16 years old. He played the main character, the Phantom, in the musical The Phantom of the Opera. After this, he got into The Lir Academy at Trinity College Dublin. He finished his acting degree in 2017. He even found agents to represent him before he graduated.

Acting Career

Early Roles in Theatre and TV (2017–2020)

After finishing college, Paul got roles in two plays. He chose to star as Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby at the Gate Theatre in Dublin. Critics praised his performance. He also played the Prince in The Red Shoes at the same theatre.

In 2018, Paul was in a play called Asking for It. He also performed in London for the first time in The Plough and the Stars. He acted in other plays like A Midsummer Night's Dream and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. In 2020, he was in the play The Lieutenant of Inishmore.

Paul's first big TV role was in the miniseries Normal People. This show was based on a popular book by Sally Rooney. He played a student named Connell Waldron. This role made Paul very famous. He won a BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor for his performance. He was also nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.

Paul also appeared in a short film called Drifting in 2020. He played a firefighter in the TV show The Deceived. He was even in a music video for The Rolling Stones' song "Scarlet".

Becoming a Film Star (2021–Present)

Mescal, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Dakota Johnson promoting The Lost Daughter

Paul's first movie role was in The Lost Daughter in 2021. This movie was directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal. In 2022, Paul starred in two more movies: God's Creatures and Aftersun. Both films were shown at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. Paul's acting in both movies received great reviews. For Aftersun, he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor and a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

Paul also starred in Carmen, which came out in 2023. He played Stanley Kowalski in the play A Streetcar Named Desire in London. His performance was highly praised, and he won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor.

Mescal at the 2022 Directors' Fortnight in Cannes

In 2023, Paul acted with Andrew Scott in All of Us Strangers. He wanted to play a more lively character in this film. He was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for this role. He also starred with Saoirse Ronan in the movie Foe.

In 2024, Paul was given the Vantage Award for new artists by the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. He took on a big role in Gladiator II, which is a sequel to the famous movie Gladiator. The director, Ridley Scott, chose Paul after seeing him in Normal People. Paul trained for six months, learning strength exercises, fight moves, horse riding, and sword fighting. The movie was very successful around the world.

Paul has many exciting projects coming up. He will be in a romantic drama called The History of Sound with Josh O'Connor. He will also play William Shakespeare in a movie called Hamnet. Paul is also part of a unique film project called Merrily We Roll Along, which will be filmed over 20 years. He has also been cast as Paul McCartney in a four-part movie about the Beatles. Paul plans to return to the stage in 2027 in plays like A Whistle in the Dark and Death of a Salesman.

Personal Life

Paul speaks both English and Irish. He moved from Ireland to London in 2020. He has bought a home in Ireland where he likes to spend time when he is not working.

Paul plays the piano and has sung songs with his sister, Nell Mescal, who is also a singer. In 2020, he performed with singer Dermot Kennedy at the Natural History Museum in London. He also took part in a special online play reading to help a charity called the Actors Fund of America. Paul has mentioned that he sees a therapist to help him stay healthy and happy. He believes that fans should respect his privacy and not expect to know everything about his personal life.

Acting Credits

Key

Denotes films that have not yet been released

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2021	The Lost Daughter	Will
2022	God's Creatures	Brian O'Hara
	Aftersun	Callum Patterson
	Carmen	Aidan
2023	All of Us Strangers	Harry
	Foe	Junior
2024	Gladiator II	Lucius Verus
2025	The History of Sound	Lionel	Also executive producer
	Hamnet	William Shakespeare	Post-production
0TBA	Merrily We Roll Along	Franklin Shepard	Filming over 20 years

Television

Theatre

Music videos

Awards and Nominations

Discography

Soundtrack

See also

In Spanish: Paul Mescal para niños

• List of Irish actors
• List of Academy Award winners and nominees from Ireland
• List of actors with Academy Award nominations