Actor Paul Mescal, star of ‘Gladiator II‘, roundly rejects the trend of calling cinema “content”, arguing that films are a work of art, not just a product for social networks.
Paul Mescal, star of ‘Gladiator II‘ and Oscar nominee for ‘Aftersun‘ , makes no secret of his distaste for the use of the word “content” to refer to movies. In a recent interview with The Sunday Times, he criticized this term, describing it as “a disgusting word”. For him, films are not simply “content”; they are serious work.
According to Mescal, film productions, especially the likes of Gladiator II, directed by Ridley Scott, are not made just to generate followers or feed social networks. “In recent years, movies started to be talked about as if they were just content. That’s a dirty word. It’s not ‘content,’ it’s real work,” stated Mescal. He added that it’s not about being elitist, but about recognizing that there are two very different approaches in the industry. On the one hand, there is filmmaking made without passion or integrity, where factors such as network popularity outweigh artistry. On the other, there is filmmaking that respects its craft: where directors, lighting, designers and an entire crew work to keep the essence of cinema alive.
Mescal has earned a prominent place among moviegoers thanks to his performance in Aftersun and his role in Hulu’s Normal People, but now he is making the leap to big productions with Gladiator II, where he shares a scene with Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal and Joseph Quinn. Despite the magnitude of this project, Mescal confessed to The Times UK that he would be deeply affected by the sequel making him an overly famous star.
