Paul Mescal is opening up about the emotional scenes he filmed for his latest movie, Hamnet.
“Do you know what? This film probably looks heavier on the surface than it was [to shoot],” the actor, 29, exclusively told Us Weekly at the New York screening of the movie at The Whitby Hotel on Friday, November 21.
Mescal continued, “Obviously, there’s heavy scenes that we got to shoot, but there was nothing [I did to unwind]. I don’t have a ritual of going home in the evening and — I probably should, but I don’t. There’s nothing that jumps to my mind.”
Hamnet follows the relationship between William Shakespeare (Mescal) and his wife Agnes (Jessie Buckley) as they fall in love, marry and struggle after the tragic death of their 11-year-old son, Hamnet, which leads to the creation of Shakespeare’s famous play, Hamlet.
Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar-Jones have remained close since starring on the hit series Normal People. The pair starred as Connell Waldron and Marianne Sheridan on the Hulu show, which was based on Sally Rooney‘s novel of the same name. Following the 2020 premiere, Mescal gushed over the bond he formed with Edgar-Jones throughout filming. […]
Chloé Zhao directed the adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s award-winning 2020 novel of the same name, which is fictional but based on historical research.
“The biggest thing was making it linear,” Zhao told Us Weekly of the changes she made when bringing the story to the screen. “The book is not linear, right? And also the other thing was to bring force to Shakespeare’s characters even more. The third big thing was the play was a lot shorter in book, it was 25 pages longer in the script.”
Both Mescal and Buckley, 35, are already receiving rave reviews for their performances in the film — and Oscar buzz is circling. Mescal is being considered in the best supporting actor category, while Buckley is already frontrunner in the best actress awards season race.
“I was very emotional,” Buckley told Us at the NYC screening of saying goodbye to the character of Agnes. “Emotional to leave that space so full and felt so grateful for Chloe asking me to be part of this story, and to tell this woman’s story.”
Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal attend the “Hamnet” New York Screening. Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
From here, Buckley will appear in 2026’s The Bride!, directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Mescal will play Paul McCartney in Sam Mendes’ multi-part biopic, The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event.
He is reuniting with his Foe costar Saoirse Ronan on the project, as she’s set to play Linda McCartney.
“She’s just one of my best friends and an unbelievable actress,” Mescal told Us of Ronan, 31, “so I can’t wait to get into those scenes with her, yeah, down the line.”
The Beatles biopic series also stars Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr and Harris Dickinson as John Lennon.
Director Sam Mendes has taken on the incredibly ambitious task of making four separate Beatles biopics, one for each member of the band. Mendes, known for American Beauty, Revolutionary Road and the James Bond movie Skyfall, revealed his plans for the films in February 2024. “I’m honored to be telling the story of the greatest […]
Mescal recently told IndieWire that he actually got the chance to meet McCartney, 83, and enjoy some quality time with him ahead of filming.
“To spend any time — it’s a crazy sentence to say that I’ve spent time with that man, let alone play him,” Mescal told the outlet, adding that he will sing in the film.
Mescal confirmed, “Yeah, yeah, absolutely yeah.”
Hamnet hits theaters on Wednesday, November 26. The Beatles is set for April 2028.
With reporting by Vincent Perella
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