There’s a rumor circulating online about Paul Mescal and Ridley Scott, but Ridley‘s rep has confirmed it’s not true.
For some backstory, Paul starred in 2024’s Gladiator II, the epic historical film directed and produced by Ridley. A few months later in early 2025, it was revealed that Paul would no longer be starring in Ridley‘s The Dog Stars and Jacob Elordi would be taking over the role. At the time, scheduling issues was cited as the reason why Paul had to step away.
A new report suggested that Ridley was displeased with Paul’s performance in Gladiator II
According to a report by Puck, they claimed: “Some close to the movie say Scott blamed Mescal for Gladiator II’s underperformance, believing he wasn’t ‘masculine’ enough.” The film earned around $462 million at the worldwide box office.
Ridley Scott’s rep responds to the “masculine” report
Ridley Scott‘s rep confirmed this is not accurate, telling Just Jared: “Not true. Ridley loves Paul and was excited to work with him on Dog Stars after having enjoying such a great collaboration on Gladiator 2. Sadly, Paul’s rehearsal schedule for another film prevented him from ultimately doing Ridley’s film. While he was disappointed to lose Paul, he was thrilled to get the chance to work with Jacob, who was excellent in the role.”
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