When Irish star Paul Mescal said during an interview that meeting King Charles III at the London premiere of Gladiator II was not on his list of priorities, the public clicked their tongues thinking he had insulted the sovereign. On the contrary, according to one expert.
As per the late Queen Mother’s biographer Gareth Russell, the reaction to the actor’s statement is “overblown.” He defended the actor, saying that he listened to the clip and noted that Mescal was “really just trying to be quite clear that he wasn’t meeting his head of state.”
“However, if you listen to the rest of the clip, he’s not rude about the King. He doesn’t insult Britain or the monarchy,“ Russell explained: “The frustration from some Irish actors is that various journalists seem to think they’re British, and they’re often included amongst British actors.“
Mescal was asked if it was wild seeing Charles in person for the first time at the royal premiere of Gladiator II he replied: “It’s never something I thought was on the bingo cards. I’m Irish, so it’s not on the list of priorities, but it’s an amazing thing for Ridley (Scott) because I know how important that is for him. So to see his film celebrated in that context was pretty special.” When pressed about what he said to the King he shared that he just nodded and smiled along because he had trouble hearing what Charles was saying with his “head in such a frenzy.”
Russell further analyzed Mescal’s words saying: “He then goes on to say that he knew that meeting the King was a really big deal for his friend and director, Sir Ridley Scott, because Ridley is a British subject, and it was a great honor to see the monarch there and that was lovely for Mescal to see because he’s worked with Ridley Scott.”
The royal author denied that Mescal was “insulting Britain or the King” but “just trying to be fairly clear that he’s not British and that he’s a citizen of the Republic of Ireland.” He urged viewers to listen intently to the whole interview so they can see that he was only making “a clear distinction between being an Irish citizen who was meeting a foreign head of state, but thinking that that was lovely for his British colleagues.”
I don’t think there was any insult meant behind it. Obviously there is a long history with many Irish nationalists and Republicans being anti the British monarchy. But I think if you listen to what Mescal was saying, he was just being very clear, proud of a southern Irish identity, but not in any way, I think, personally insulting to the King at all.
Mescal, Scott, and the rest of the cast of Gladiator II met Charles ahead of the screening of the film at the Odeon Luxe Cinema on Nov. 13. Videos from the event showed the cast lining up on the red carpet and briefly engaged in a conversation with the King. Mescal’s interaction with Charles was very brief indeed as seen in the clip above he’s just smiling and nodding. The questions directed at him during his interview were deemed tone deaf by many considering the ugly history between Ireland and Britain.