US GQ November 2024 : Paul Mescal by Daniel Jackson

[KoV]

I think he's ripped enough to be a gladiator. He could beat my *** any day of the week I mean, he looks strong and capable in a sort of everyman way, not like a superhero or someone who spends hours upon hours trying to sculpt massive muscles.

Part of the trouble with promoting these movies is that it started filming a year and a half ago. He may have been larger at that point. I think he's done a movie since then and is now filming a movie where he's playing Shakespeare, so I guess he's a proper actor and not a Hemsworth or someone who stays Thor-ready for years on end. I find it astonishing he's only 28 but that's increasingly part of the appeal, for me (him looking older, I mean lol)

I think he's the most compelling hyped-up youngish actor to come along in quite some time, though, so I'm hoping Gladiator II is a success and he builds a long career.

 

[MulletProof]

He could beat my *** any day of the week

😂

I was seriously wondering cause I remember looking at the trailer and thinking that he had clearly done his homework and this didn't quite match.. it makes sense he'd go back to a more versatile body shape, Hemsworth types are more limited to certain periods and roles due to their more conventional and modern image.

I agree Paul is fantastic as an actor, it's just hard to see sometimes due to the teenagers' hype and amount of content surrounding his personal life.. I think I've seen him in maybe 4 films now and he's been excellent in all of them, especially Carmen.

 

[Phuel]

no shade I just wonder if he had to deflate for a new role, cause.. isn't gladiator ripped? daniel really had him doing some acrobatic work and clever cropping so that he can sell the movie but it's not quite working.

I do think magazines have done wonders with him.. hype aside, one of the first scenes of np, when they kiss for the first time and he tells her he'd rather no one knows, I remember thinking that was the first and last time we were going to see this actor cause he just.. did not have the looks (in the words of @KoV , premature aging? 16 going on 31).. then yeah, the story unfolds and you do want to see more of him, but my point is, looks alone are not his forte so stories looking somewhat good is quite an achievement imo.

Don’t mean to sound the hardcore nerd, but let's go: Many of the physically, unassuming strongest musculatures aren’t what would be considered ideally ripped/shredded physiques. The lumberjacks/strongmen/sheet metal workers that rely on physical brute strength every single moment of their work are way way way stronger than the typical gym rat/mary. Same conclusion could be drawn for gladiators of antiquity. His musculature in the trailer looks faithful to that theory. And frankly, naturally beefy/husky men are way way way more sexier than the typical gym rat/mary that starve themselves to achieve definition.

(I knew a woman who would be considered “big”. She was naturally thicc, built like a boxer: No chiseled definition, no abs, no aesthetics etc But she was so strong— stronger than many of the gym rats that were there more for aesthetic than strengthbuilding.)

 

[MulletProof]

^ no, you don't! I 100% agree and let me just clear up my name here lol: I do NOT endorse the gym rat look nor the gross diets and powders that help achieve it. I meant to say there's a difference between the Gladiator of the trailer and of course the one imprinted in our heads by Russell Crowe, and the one of his promotional gigs, such as this story, where he looks less buff and there seems to be an ongoing need in every photo to make sure he matches this ideal- odd cropping included!

Strength is really the amount of time and discipline you invest on it, I agree it has nothing to do with shape, but just being educated and respectful to your body on how to improve it. I have a co-worker who is tiny (really no taller than maybe 1.50 cms?!), we worked out together not long ago and I nearly passed out lol, she was lifting 35 pounds on each arm like they were feathers, not me! 5 minutes of 15 and I'm out 😂.. in my defense, cardio is where I shine!

 

[Phuel]

^^^ Not at all implying you were LOL Just oftentimes these Hollywood productions and actors go through intense training for a MCU superhero body that’s just not at all what the gladiators of old would have resembled. It’s this modern ideal that’s purely for pop culture consumption. It’s actually great to see Paul developed a convincingly powerful, strong body that doesn’t look like it’s designed by PEDs/trainers/strict diets/gym (although it likely was) but one that looks like a brute fighter and warrior.

Are you still committed to your bimbo workout LMFAO (Mullet grinding/humping/twerking to Dua Lipa looking like Margaret Qualley’s Sue in The Substance is a sight…) 20min of that type of cardio will burn for leanness, but not so much build strength. I’d highly recommend jumping rope with ankle weights as an alternative to running. Whereas a rugby player (my personal preference when it comes to musculature) would have strong cardio and brute strength because of the nature of their training and sport. And if they added targeted training to certain muscle groups at the gym, then ohmygod…

And then there’s just natural genetics. Just like a female model of yore were prized for her godgiven ratio of smaller head to longer, taller body, broad shoulders, long neck and chiseled bone structure, some are just naturally stronger, further enhanced by training that those of us not so blessed with natural strength could ever equal to no matter how much and how hard we train. My friend who was always freakishly strong having never trained, took up bodybuilding during the pandemic. Now she’s ripped and strong— but not necessarily stronger, since she’s on a strict diet during competition. Someone like her would have been a natural gladiator; Must be the Germanic gene…

Sorry to stray from that tacky coverstory. Shame on George!

 

[luxorious]

He loooks so bored