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Paul Mescal has admitted he was so nervous about meeting Denzel Washington on set gladiator Continuing that he ended up postponing it for a whole day when he revealed the first thing the veteran actor said to him.

The Irish actor stars alongside the legendary US star, 69, in Gladiator II, Ridley Scott's sequel to his epic 2000 historical action film.

Set to hit cinemas in the UK on November 15, the film follows Mescal's character Lucius Verus, who is captured by the Roman army after they invade his home and is forced to fight as a gladiator. Washington plays Macrinus, a former slave who wants to use Lucius in his plan to control Rome.

Published on The Graham Norton Show with his co-star, along with fellow Irish actor Saoirse Ronan and British actor Eddie Redmayne, Mescal explained how he wanted to introduce himself on the first day of filming together in Washington.

After filming had finished for the day, he stood “at the foot of the stairs” that led to the box where Washington had been: “I stood there for a few minutes and thought, 'Not today.' So I got out, ran to my dressing room and said, 'Tomorrow you're going to be a brave boy.'”

On the second day, he waited again and finally ran into Washington, who shook his hand and apparently said, “Stop practicing, man.”

In the same episode, Mescal explained the strenuous training regimen his personal trainer put him through to play the role of Lucius.

He shared that he did “everything” the coach asked of him, including “eating a lot of chicken and lifting heavy things,” and admitted he drew the line when it came to that Quit smoking and drinking alcohol.

He also revealed that he was offered the role immediately after a 30-minute conversation with Scott: “Ridley doesn't waste time,” he said. “I thought there would be camera tests and auditions, but we zoomed for half an hour, talked about the role for 10 minutes and then 20 minutes about Gaelic football, his dog and his wife.”

Studio executives announced last year that Mescal starred shirtless in the West End production of “Oldtimer.” A tram named Desire were the ones who convinced her he would be perfect for the role.

“He played Stanley, and there were several moments where he took his shirt off and it was electric,” said Paramount co-chief executive Daria Cercek diversity last July. After seeing these scenes, which made “the ladies” in the audience “very vocal,” Cercek and her co-director Michael Ireland agreed they had “found our man.”

Reactions from the first critics Gladiator II were largely positive, with some predicting an Oscar nomination for Washington.

Gladiator II hits UK cinemas on November 15th and in the US on November 22nd.