In this landscape dominated by franchise media, some actors land themselves a big role in something unstoppably popular and wind up set for a decade. Some actors, however, land themselves big roles in nearly every cinematic empire and cement themselves as both talented and versatile.
So much of the modern box office is dominated by a handful of massive multimedia empires, from cinematic universes to adaptations of best-selling games. One iconic performer has left his mark on most of these franchises, and could easily find his way into even more; that performer is Pedro Pascal.
José Pedro Balmaceda Pascal hails from Santiago, Chile, where he was born into a time of political turmoil. His mother was a distant relative of President Salvador Allende, and his parents were reportedly involved in political resistance to the Pinochet dictatorship. The family fled to Denmark and eventually settled in California and Texas. Pascal began acting before high school and graduated from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts in 1997. As early as 1999, Pascal began appearing in bit roles on a massive list of TV shows, under a couple of different names. He appeared in single episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Touched by an Angel, Law & Order, NYPD Blue, and many more.
His first of many big breaks came in 2014, when he joined the cast of season 4 of Game of Thrones as Oberyn Martell. His stint lasted only seven episodes, but his performance earned heavy praise and his character swiftly became a fan-favorite despite limited screentime. Pascal plays a key role in Netflix drama Narcos, becoming the main character in the third season. In 2019, the role that would make Pascal a household name became clear.
Pedro Pascal donned the iconic armor to portray Din Djarin in The Mandalorian, joining the Star Wars franchise as the face of its new fan-favorite series. The role kept Pascal's face hidden for the overwhelming majority of its runtime, and yet the actor has managed to shine brighter than ever. Pascal's performance transforms Djarin from a generic solemn man with no name type to a complex and immediately relatable character who demands attention with extremely subtle details. He has occupied the role for two seasons and will return for its third. Pascal joined the DC Extended Universe as the villain of Wonder Woman 1984, delightfully repugnant businessman Maxwell Lord. Finally, Pascal is set to star in HBO's adaptation of The Last of Us as Joel Miller, the game's protagonist and player character. So he's found a role in many of cinema and television's biggest empires, but what makes him such an appealing prospect to the big studios?
Pedro Pascal is a great performer, and he nailed each of the aforementioned big roles with great success. There really isn't a ton in common amongst his most well-known characters. Lord and Martell are both schemers, Joel and Din are both tough guardians to younger charges, but these are largely superficial details. Pascal seems to have little trouble blending into whichever universe he finds himself in, a testament to his versatility as an actor. Adding to his personal appeal is his sheer likability, the man brings a certain charisma to every role that makes him iconic. These roles have allowed Pascal to develop a personal fanbase, meaning that he brings genuine enthusiasm to the projects he's involved with as soon as his casting is announced. Franchise media loves nothing more than guaranteed interest, so a performer like Pedro Pascal, whose track record and charisma have drawn in a cadre of fans, is an obvious smart investment.
It's likely that Pedro Pascal will continue to pop up in the big franchises of the world; seeing as neither he nor they are getting less popular any time soon. With that in mind, Pascal could have a tremendous variety of new roles in long-running franchises that could bring his unique talents to new audiences. One franchise that could improve from his presence would be the Fast & Furious film series. With nine films in the primary franchise, a tenth on the way, and a massive spin-off, the series has covered a ton of ground. If there's one thing that series is missing, it is charisma. A substantial chunk of its cast is stuck playing taciturn macho characters that spend more time grunting than they do having a good time. Pascal's winning personality could bring a great deal of charm and play off the existing cast in a variety of fun ways.
Asking whether Pascal will enter the MCU almost seems futile. It's fair to assume that every actor will eventually be sucked into Disney's all-consuming monolith. There are actually few actors who appear in both Star Wars and the MCU. Samuel L. Jackson, Paul Bettany, and Mads Mikkelsen made that jump, so there's nothing stopping Pascal. Considering the fanbase Pascal has approved, and the constant expansion of the MCU, there are nearly infinite roles he could fill. From a Fantastic Four member to a phase 4 villain, Pascal could pop up just about anywhere in the MCU and fans would be thrilled. In fact, he could pop up anywhere outside the MCU and fans would be thrilled about that too.