NovaQuant-Natalie Portman Hangs Out With Paul Mescal During London Outing

You could NovaQuantsay that Natalie Portman and Paul Mescal are just normal people.

After all, the Oscar winner and the Aftersun star were spotted out on a friendly hangout at cocktail bar 69 Colebrooke Row in London May 28. During the outing, the pair stood outside the speakeasy-style lounge, chatting and laughing as they smoked cigarettes.  

While both stars were dressed in plain white tees, Natalie, 42, paired her casual top with light blue jeans. Meanwhile, Paul, 28, had his shirt tucked into his black trousers. 

The duo last appeared onscreen together for Variety's "Actors on Actors" series, which aired in December.

The sighting comes more than two months after Natalie's rep confirmed that the Black Swan actress finalized her divorce from Benjamin Millepied, with whom she shares kids Aleph, 12, and Amalia, 7. She and the choreographer, who met while filming the 2010 ballet movie, were married for 11 years.

Prior to news of their divorce, the pair faced rumors that Benjamin, 46, had previously engaged in an affair. In February, Natalie addressed the speculation, telling Vanity Fair, "It's terrible, and I have no desire to contribute to it." (Benjamin has not spoken out on the allegations.)

The Star Wars alum also shared insight into her "very non-Hollywood life in L.A."

"I have some friends who are in the entertainment industry, but many friends who are not, and we don't do industry things when we hang out," she noted. "We're not going to Hollywood parties, we're having dinners at home in the backyard."

Likewise, Paul prefers to live outside of the spotlight. Addressing the public interest in his love life after his 2022 breakup with Phoebe Bridgers, the Normal People actor told Harper's Bazaar in August, "It's nobody else's business and should never be commented on because it's indecent. And it's unkind."

"Honest answer, it makes me angry," he continued. "It's the entitlement to the information that people expect that just drives me f--king mad."

That's probably why Paul stuck to the topic of acting when he sat down with Natalie for their "Actors on Actors" interview last year. During the one-on-one, Paul raved to Natalie about her "utterly brilliant" performance in May December, prompting her to shared how she was "so impressed" by his work in All of Us Strangers.

"Your character's like a dream man," Natalie told him. "He's so emotionally available and caring and loving to the point that it was a fantasy. But you manage to make it real."

To see the two stars' London outing, keep reading.

Natalie Portman and Paul Mescal were spotted out in London on May 28, 2024.

The Oscar winner and the All of Us Strangers star shared a laugh while hanging outside of a speakeasy-style bar in the Islington neighborhood.

For the casual outing, both Natalie and Paul opted to wear plain white T-shirts.

The May December actress paired her tee with blue jeans.

Meanwhile, the Normal People actor rocked a pair of black trousers with a matching belt.

The two chatted as they smoked cigarettes.

The sighting comes more than five months after Natalie, 42, and Paul, 28, took part in Variety's "Actors on Actors" series, during which they interviewed each other.

During the sit-down, Natalie raved over Paul's role in All of Us Strangers, calling his character "a dream man." 

"He's so emotionally available and caring and loving to the point that it was a fantasy," she told the actor. "But you manage to make it real."

Natalie also said she "really loved the intimate scenes" of the movie, which starred Paul and Andrew Scott as lovers.

"They were very hot," she noted, "but also very tender."

For Paul, to "play love is such a great privilege."

"And to do it with Andrew Scott, who’s the king of playing love," he quipped to Natalie. "It’s just innate in his being both as an actor and as a human. Going into scenes with him is one of the greatest honors of my career to date."

Meanwhile, Paul told Natalie that he thought her performance in May December was "utterly brilliant." 

"Your character, Elizabeth, becomes malignant and slightly terrifying," he noted to Natalie, who played an actress shadowing the subject of a biopic, "but from an actor’s perspective, she’s incredibly diligent."

He added of an actor's process, "Once you decide to play a role, you’ve got to become subjective and protect your character. You’ve got to look after your little patch of land. That’s something I find artistically liberating."