Ridley Scott responds to reports of Paul Mescal being fired from ‘The Dog Stars’ for not being “masculine enough” in ‘Gladiator II’

Ridley Scott has responded to reports that he fired Paul Mescal from The Dog Stars for not being masculine enough in Gladiator II. READ MORE: ‘Gladiator 2’ review: back to Rome for Paul Mescal’s Colosseum-sized sequel The 2024 sequel to the Oscar-winning 2000 historical drama saw Mescal step into the shoes of Russell Crowe as a man seeking revenge by becoming a gladiator in Rome’s Colosseum. Despite being a box office success, making $462million (£342million) and having an 80 per cent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, many considered it inferior to the original. According to a new report from Puck’s newsletter What I’m Hearing, writer Matthew Belloni writes that Ridley Scott blamed Mescal for the film’s response, claiming he was not “masculine” enough for the part. The disappointment allegedly led to him being replaced on Scott’s new movie The Dog Stars by Jacob Elordi. The switch may have been fortuitous for Mescal, however, as the new film flopped last weekend at the box office. Now, a representative for Scott has denied the claims, saying that Mescal didn’t appear in the movie as filming clashed with another of his projects. In a statement to Entertainment Weekly, a representat...