Paul Mescal ready to make big change for new year after Oscar nomination

Paul Mescal’s fans can start making their re-watch list for his movies as the Oscar contender is gearing up to take a long hiatus from acting.

The 29-year-old Irish actor has starred in several critically acclaimed films, but for the new year, he plans to either retreat for a while or return to his theatrical roots.

The Hamnet star shared, “I’m five or six years into this now, and I feel very lucky. But I’m also learning that I don’t think I can go on doing it as much,” in conversation with The Guardian.

When the BAFTA-winning actor was asked if he would start rationing his work, he told the outlet, “I think so. I’m gonna have to start doing that. For sure. Rationing doesn’t necessarily mean less.”

He explained, “It means learning that films like The History of Sound take more out of the well. You can’t keep going back and expect to consistently deliver something you’re proud of.”

The Aftersun actor admitted that he doesn’t know how he would ration his projects, but it could be only theatre for a couple of years, as well as different “priorities in my personal life that I want to attend to.”

After Mescal is done promoting the Oscar-nominated movie, Hamnet, he remarked, “I hope nobody gets to see me until 2028 when I’m doing the Beatles. People will get a break from me, and I’ll get a break from them.”

The Normal People actor has signed up to play Paul McCartney in The Beatles biopic, alongside a star-studded cast including Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr and Harris Dickinson as John Lennon.