Paul Mescal is an Irish actor known for his roles on stage and screen. His accolades include two BAFTA Awards and a Laurence Olivier Award as well as nominations for an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Critics' Choice Awards.
He first gained recognition for his breakout starring role as Connell Waldron, a complex romantic lead struggling with identity, romance, and mental health issues in the BBC / Hulu romantic drama miniseries Normal People (2020). The series was an adaptation of the Sally Rooney 2018 novel of the same name. He earned acclaim for his performance as well as the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor along with nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie and the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actor.
On film, he portrayed an emotionally unavailable father in the Charlotte Wells directed independent drama film Aftersun (2022) earned him many nominations, including for the Academy Award for Best Actor, BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actor. He received the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Vantage Award for his contribution to film. That following year he was nominated for BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for playing a mysterious neighbor in the psychological drama All of Us Strangers (2024).
Mescal has also received the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Stanley Kowalski in the 2022 West End revival of the play A Streetcar Named Desire. He reprised his role Off-Broadway in New York City earning acclaim as well as a Theater World Award and nominations a Drama League Award, and a Dorian Award for his performance.
Major associations Academy Awards Year Category Nominated work Result 2023Best ActorAftersun
Actor Awards Year Category Nominated work Result 2026 Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture Hamnet Outstanding Male Actor in a Supporting Role
BAFTA Awards Year Category Nominated work Result British Academy Film Awards2023Best Actor in a Leading RoleAftersun 2024 Best Actor in a Supporting RoleAll of Us Strangers2026 Hamnet British Academy Television Awards2021Best ActorNormal People British Academy Scotland Awards2023Best Actor FilmAftersun
Critics' Choice Awards Year Category Nominated work Result Critics' Choice Movie Awards2023Best ActorAftersun 2026 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet Critics' Choice Television Awards2021Best Actor in a Movie/MiniseriesNormal People
Emmy Awards Year Category Nominated work Result Primetime Emmy Awards2020Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or MovieNormal People
European Film Awards Year Category Nominated work Result 2022 European Actor Aftersun
Golden Globe Awards Year Category Nominated work Result Ref. 2026 Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture Hamnet
Laurence Olivier Awards Year Category Nominated work Result 2023Best ActorA Streetcar Named Desire
Miscellaneous accolades Organizations Year Category Work Result Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Vantage Award AACTA International Awards Best Actor in a SeriesNormal People 2026 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet British Independent Film Awards 2022 Best Supporting PerformanceGod's Creatures Best Joint Lead PerformanceAftersun 2023 Best Supporting Performance All of Us Strangers Broadcasting Press Guild Awards Best ActorNormal People Breakthrough Award Dorian Awards Best TV Performance – Actor Film Performance of the Year Aftersun Supporting Film Performance of the Year All of Us Strangers Gotham Independent Film Awards Best Lead Performance Aftersun IFTA Film & Drama Awards 2021 Best Lead Actor – TV Drama Normal People 2023 Best Lead Actor – Film Aftersun Best Supporting Actor – Film God's Creatures 2024 All of Us Strangers 2025 Best Lead Actor – Film Gladiator II 2026 Best Supporting Actor – Film Hamnet Independent Spirit Awards2023 Best Lead Performance Aftersun MTV Movie & TV Awards Best Breakthrough Performance Normal People Royal Television Society Programme Awards Actor: Male Palm Springs International Film FestivalVanguard Award Hamnet Satellite Awards Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Theater awards Organizations Year Category Work Result Drama League Awards 2025 Distinguished Performance AwardA Streetcar Named Desire https://playbill.com/article/2025-drama-league-awards-nominations-are-out-read-the-full-list Dorian Awards 2025Outstanding Performance in an Off-Broadway Play Theater World Award 2025 Outstanding Broadway or Off-Broadway Debut Performance
Other associations Award Year Category Nominated work Result Astra Film Awards 2023 Best Actor Aftersun 2026 Best Supporting Actor - Drama Hamnet Alliance of Women Film Journalists 2023 Best Actor Aftersun 2026 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet Best Ensemble Cast & Casting Director Austin Film Critics Association 2023 Best Actor Aftersun Chicago Film Critics Association 2022 Best Actor Chlotrudis Awards 2023 Best Actor Columbus Film Critics Association 2023 Best Lead Performance Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association 2025 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet Denver Film Critics Society 2023 Best Actor Aftersun 2026 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet DiscussingFilm Critic Awards 2023 Best Actor Aftersun 2026 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet Dublin Film Critics' Circle 2022 Best Actor Aftersun Festival du nouveau cinéma 2022 Prix d'interprétation Florida Film Critics Circle 2022 Best Actor Georgia Film Critics Association 2023 Best Actor Greater Western New York Film Critics Association 2022 Best Actor Houston Film Critics Society 2026 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet Indiana Film Journalists Association 2022 Best Lead Performance Aftersun 2025 Best Supporting Performance Hamnet International Cinephile Society 2023 Best Actor Aftersun Kansas City Film Critics Circle 2023 Best Actor Latino Entertainment Journalists Association 2023 Best Actor 2026 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet London Film Critics' Circle2023 Actor of the Year Aftersun British/Irish Actor of the Year 2024 All of Us Strangers / God's Creatures Foe / Carmen Supporting Actor of the Year All of Us Strangers Michigan Movie Critics Guild 2025 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet Minnesota Film Critics Alliance 2023 Best Actor Aftersun 2026 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet Music City Film Critics Association 2023 Best Actor Aftersun National Society of Film Critics 2023 Best Actor North Dakota Film Society 2023 Best Actor 2024 Best Supporting Actor All of Us Strangers 2026 Hamnet Best Ensemble North Texas Film Critics Association 2025 Best Supporting Actor Gary Murray Award Online Association of Female Film Critics 2022 Best Male Lead Aftersun Online Film Critics Society 2023 Best Actor Portland Critics Association 2025 Best Supporting Performance Hamnet Puerto Rico Critics Association 2026 Best Supporting Actor San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle 2023 Best Actor Aftersun 2025 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet Seattle Film Critics Society 2023 Best Actor in a Leading Role Aftersun SESC Film Festival 2023 Best Foreign Actor (Critics Award) Best Foreign Actor (Audience Award) St. Louis Film Critics Association 2022 Best Actor 2025 Best Supporting Actor Hamnet Best Ensemble Sunset Film Circle Awards 2022 Best Actor Aftersun Toronto Film Critics Association 2023 Best Actor UK Film Critics Association 2022 Actor of the Year Vancouver Film Critics Circle 2023 Best Actor Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association 2022 Best Actor 2025Best EnsembleHamnet
Notes
See also List of Irish actors List of Academy Award winners and nominees from Ireland List of actors with Academy Award nominations References