Paul Mescal plays "Irish or Not Irish" with Variety.Variety, YouTube
Irish actor Paul Mescal sat down with Variety recently to set the record straight on all things Irish and not Irish.
Irish? GAA, Gaeilge, lock-ins, craic (not crack).
Not Irish? Top of the morning, ‘St. Patty’s Day,’ and four-leaf clovers.
Mescal was chatting with Variety amidst his media blitz for his latest film “Gladiator II,” which he says people should be “very excited” about.
During the “Irish or Not Irish” game, Mescal gave a perhaps surprising answer when asked if Daisy Edgar-Jones, his (British) co-star in the smash hit series “Normal People,” is Irish or not Irish.
“Honorary Irish person,” he said with a big smile, adding that she has Irish family.
Mescal joked that in this instance, he is doing what British media has been caught doing a number of times, claiming Irish stars as their own.
“I claim her as Irish,” he said. “One of the few non-Irish to do the Irish accent as well as anybody I’ve ever seen.”
Later in the "Irish or Not Irish" game, Mescal gave a rather poignant answer to whether the phrase "the luck of the Irish" is actually Irish or not.
"That feels like a leprechaun-y statement, doesn't it?" Mescal said.
"I think, historically, Irish people haven't been that lucky, if you look at certain things," he added with a laugh.
"I would say - not Irish."
Concluding the "Irish or not Irish" game, Mescal was asked to name something he thinks is "inherently Irish."
After giving a thoughtful pause, Mescal replied: "Supermac's is very Irish. Supermac's is like an Irish McDonald's. The best Supermac's is in Galway. If anyone is heading out that way, I would recommend a chicken burger from Supermac's."