“Gladiator II” star Paul Mescal made his hosting debut tonight during the 50th season of “Saturday Night Live” and riffed on everything from his lack of comedic performances to his Irish roots.
Clad in all black and sporting a mustache, Mescal took to the stage at Studio 8H, saying, “I’m Paul Mescal and it is great to be here. I’ve always loved SNL. This place has such history.”
Mescal, who’s from Maynooth, Ireland, continued, “Growing up back home I never expected to be here. I’m also excited to be here because I’m not really known for comedy, which is funny to me because I think I’ve given a lot of really funny performances.”
The actor, who’s known for his dramatic roles like in the Hulu miniseries “Normal People,” added, “I think we have some highlights here.” Clips from Mescal’s work in “Normal People” and other dramatic film performances played in the studio to much laughter.
With a smile, he said, “I think it’s funny, no? I think it’s clear, I’m not afraid to do emotional scenes, or nude scenes, or nude emotional scenes. But recently, I did pivot to something new in ‘Gladiator II.’ It’s a big action-packed blockbuster. Here’s a look,” said Mescal with a smile, as a clip of him crying in the shower played.
“It’s safe to say there’s not a lot of comedy on the resume,” he said with a grin.
“Anyway, I do take great pride in being Irish,” said Mescal. “The Irish people have been through a lot. Centuries of British occupation, the great famine, mass immigration, that U2 album that automatically got downloaded on people’s phones.”
Then the actor took time to address some “ugly stereotypes” about the Irish. “There’s a nasty rumor that Irish people have sex with our cousins. That’s offensive and it’s ridiculous. We have sex with our second cousins,” he said, barely suppressing a laugh.
“People also think we hate British people. That’s not true,” said Mescal, “we just don’t consider them people.” When asked if Notre Dame’s Fighting Irish mascot is offensive, Mescal said, “Not at all. We do the same thing with the Americans; in fact, my high school’s mascot was the Fighting Fat Asses.”
The actor also dispelled the notion that Irish people wear kilts. “No, that’s the Scottish. Traditionally, the Irish wear short shorts,” he said, as a picture of Mescal in tiny shorts popped on screen. “Did someone say short shorts?” asked Marcello Hernandez, who appeared onstage wearing tiny shorts.
“You know what they say, Paul, the shorter the shorts the taller you look,” said Hernandez.
“I don’t think it’s working, bud,” said Mescal with a laugh.
Mescal acknowledged one Irish stereotype that, for him, rings true tonight. “People often talk about the luck of the Irish. I do feel very, very lucky to be here. I’m in New York City. I’m hosting SNL and this feels totally insane to me,” concluded Mescal with a smile.
In his first skit, Mescal appeared in a musical version of “Gladiator II,” which imagined the epic with an extra 50 minutes of music added and Mescal singing about being a misunderstood killing machine.
Watch the spoof version of the “Gladiator II” trailer below:
Grammy-nominated Shaboozey is the episode’s musical guest.
Watch the monologue below:
English (US) ·