Paul Mescal reveals he is ready for his career to 'slow down'

Paul Mescal has revealed he is ready for his career to "slow down" following several years of high-profile success.

The Irish actor, best known for his roles in Normal People and Gladiator II, has explained that he is now keen to prioritise his personal life over his professional commitments as he approaches a new stage in his life.

During the latest episode of GQ's YouTube series 21 Questions to Fall in Love, Paul reflected on the fast pace of his career and admitted his outlook has shifted as he gets older.

"I really enjoyed the rhythm I've been working at," he said. "I think that process began when I was 23 and I'm now turning 30."

Paul continued, "I can feel myself wanting to slow down a bit more and certain priorities come in where I spend my time, whether that's with my family or with my partner or with friends."

The All of Us Strangers star, who is dating singer Gracie Abrams, also revealed that work had been his sole focus until recently.

"I've never had a desire to really spend my time anywhere else other than work up until this point...," he shared. "And now I do have a desire to not spend my time necessarily in a rehearsal room or on set."

Paul noted that genuine downtime has been rare throughout his career, with breaks often spent preparing for upcoming roles rather than resting.

"I've had six weeks (off work), but it's always been in preparation for another job," Paul stated. "The maximum amount of time I ever had (off work) is like eight, nine weeks. Three of those would be in bed, recovering, and then the next six weeks would be preparing for the next thing."

When asked how he would like to spend time away from work, Paul said he would "love to go on a long backpacking holiday in South America".

Paul most recently starred as William Shakespeare in Chloé Zhao's film Hamnet. The film won two Golden Globes on Sunday.