Normal People’s Paul Mescal has revealed that he and his co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones recently watched the show in full while playing a drinking game.
Mescal, who has been named breakthrough actor of the year ahead of GQ’s forthcoming virtual Men of the Year Awards, told the magazine: “We actually ended up playing a little drinking game: every time Connell wouldn't complete a sentence or any time Marianne would make an emphatic statement that made Connell uncomfortable we did a shot.”
He added: “We ended up talking over most of it, just reflecting on particular days, costume changes, memories. It was very special to get to do that with her. The thing we shared – will always share – is so unique.”
Mescal also said the media attention in the aftermath of the show has been “totally brutal”.
“At first you think, ‘Oh, this is a bit glamorous,’” he said. “When someone is taking a picture of you buying ready-to-eat avocados and cigarettes at the off-licence, but soon enough you feel it begin to infiltrate your brain.”
The BBC One adaptation of Sally Rooney’s bestseller made headlines for its steamy intimate scenes, and Mescal recently admitted they were “quite unsexy” to film.
Mescal has been cast in Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut, The Lost Daughter.
He joins Oscar-winning actor Olivia Colman, Dakota Johnson, Peter Sarsgaard and Jessie Buckley in the film.
The Lost Daughter will be an adaptation of Italian author Elena Ferrante’s 2006 novel.
The story follows Colman’s character, a college professor who becomes obsessed with a young mother and her daughter while on holiday, at the same time recalling her own, troubled memories of early motherhood.
GQ Men Of The Year Awards 2020 in association with Hugo Boss can be viewed on British GQ's YouTube channel on Thursday 26 November at 8pm.
