A representative for Ridley Scott has denied claims that the director said wasn’t ‘masculine’ enough for the 2026 sci-fi/action film .

A report claimed Mescal was dropped from the film after his leading role in underperformed at the box office.

Scott’s representative directly denied the report. The spokesperson told that the claims were “not true”, adding: “Ridley loves Paul and was excited to work with him on after having [enjoyed] such a great collaboration on .”

Jacob Elordi replaces Paul Mescal in

Mescal was originally attached to star in , but was replaced by due to “scheduling” issues.

The representative maintained that scheduling was the actual reason Mescal left. The rep explained: “Sadly, Paul’s rehearsal schedule for another film prevented him from ultimately doing Ridley’s film.”

The spokesperson added: “While he was disappointed to lose Paul, he was thrilled to get the chance to work with Jacob, who was excellent in the role.”

Mescal to star as Paul McCartney

Mescal’s scheduling conflict was connected to Sam Mendes’ Beatles films, in which he will play band member Paul McCartney in the four-part biopic series.

Scott had previously acknowledged the scheduling issue, telling The Hollywood Reporter: “Paul is actually stacked up, doing the Beatles next. So I may have to let him go.”

while praised by fans, with costs reportedly soaring near $250 million (£184.6 million), the film needed a massive global box office haul to turn a profit.