How Sarah Paulson Once Kept A Struggling Pedro Pascal 'Alive'

Highlights

• Pedro Pascal and Sarah Paulson's friendship goes back over 20 years.
• Paulson supported Pascal in more ways than one while he was auditioning for work in the early 2000s.
• Despite their close bond, Sarah Paulson and Pedro Pascal have never been romantically involved.

Pedro Pascal and Sarah Paulson's friendship has lasted over 20 years. With Pascal starring in The Mandalorian and the HBO drama series The Last of Us and Paulson dominating in nine seasons of Ryan Murphy's anthology series American Horror Story, we know the pair as two of the most popular actors in Hollywood. With both of their respective successes, it's hard to think of a day when they weren't the "in-demand" actors they are now. But toward the beginning of Pedro Pascal and Sarah Paulson's friendship in New York, success wasn't always on the radar for the actors, specifically for Pascal.

Gen Z fans have adoringly dubbed Paulson and Pascal as "Mommy and Daddy," and though they aren't actually a couple, their relationship has seen them operate in a similar fashion. Back in their early days in New York City, Pedro Pascal's career wasn't as promising as it now appears. The actor was down in the dumps. In fact, Pascal would have likely hit rock bottom if it weren't for Paulson, whose generosity back in the day helped the actor when he couldn't find work in Hollywood. And, aren't we glad she did? Here's how Sarah Paulson helped her longtime pal Pedro Pascal early on in his career.

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How Pedro Pascal And Sarah Paulson Became Friends

It all began in New York City in 1993. In a 2014 conversation between Pedro Pascal and Sarah Paulson for Interview magazine, the Narcos star revealed the duo met in September 1993 when he had just moved to New York City. "I was really lucky because my first friend at NYU lived in Brooklyn, Kristen, and went to high school with you, so your guys' posse kind of adopted me," Pascal told Paulson.

One of their earliest memories, Pascal recalls, was the pair and their friends all going to see the film Fearless in The Upper East Side. "There were eight of us sitting next to each other and, as I remember, we were all sobbing by the end of it," Pascal recalled. After finishing the movie, they all went to the park, where they just so happened to see actor Woody Harrelson.

"We were the two people who knew exactly who he was and fanned out a little bit. Nobody else cared," Pascal said. "We had our little celebrity sighting moment and that, in retrospect, was our first step towards bonding."

The gang of friends gallivanted about New York City, continuing their wild night. Pascal remembered the group "running down Fifth Avenue" and "getting knocked down by a cabbie."

"I remember that so clearly," Paulson said. "It's a wonder we survived. When I think about the debauchery, the things that we did, the kind of sh*t we were pulling and the way we were behaving, I don't even know how we made it to the next morning, much less 20 years later."

Believe it or not, the pair's friendship saw a time when they went through a "period of estrangement," wherein their lives diverted them apart from one another. But not to worry, it wasn't because there was a quarrel of sort between them. "I think we went through a period where we didn't talk as much, but it was never because we were fighting," Paulson said.

Pascal explained it was because Paulson moved to Los Angeles to further pursue her acting career. "You were the first of all of us that started working and never stopped," he said.

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Sarah Paulson Used To Give Pedro Pascal Money So That He Could Eat

Pedro Pascal struggled in the early days of his career and Sarah Paulson was there for him in such a heartfelt way. Like the song "That's What Friends Are For" says, "In good times and bad times, I'll be on your side forever more," Paulson helped her Pascal out by lending him money in his times of need. She told Esquire their friendship was solid enough that she could give him money while he auditioned for work. This was around the early 2000s.

"He’s talked about this publicly, but there were times when I would give him my per diem from a job I was working on so that he could have money to feed himself," she explained.

Pascal admitted to being worried his career would never take off — especially in those early years when his gigs were few and far between.

"I died so many deaths," he told Esquire. "My vision of it was that if I didn’t have some major exposure by the time I was twenty-nine years old, it was over, so I was constantly readjusting what it meant to commit my life to this profession, and giving up the idea of it looking like I thought it would when I was a kid. There were so many good reasons to let that delusion go."

Pascal eventually saw success come his way when he scored his first acting role ever on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which he celebrated as a massive success. "I was so excited to be on it, mostly because people in my life that I respected so much, my best friends and my sister, were obsessed with the show. Obsessed with it. I wasn’t watching it at the time," he explained.

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Have Sarah Paulson And Pedro Pascal Ever Dated?

With Sarah Paulson and Pedro Pascal's rich history together considered, it's obvious that fans have speculated if the pair had ever been romantically involved. But as we stated before— and to fans dismay— the actors are simply the best of friends.

When it comes to Paulson, many years ago she was in a long-term relationship with the playwright Tracy Letts, and they were even engaged. After Paulson and Letts broke up, she went on to fall for the actor Holland Taylor.

As for Pascal, his dating history is a bit more ambiguous. From what we know, Pascal has never been married does a fairly good job of keeping it a secret whether he is someone's husband or boyfriend. With many fans determined to figure out who the actor is romantically involved with, Pascal has kept a relatively low profile when it has come to his love life. In the past, Pascal has been linked in the press to several women including Simi Khadra, Maria Dizzia, and Robin Tunney. Most notably, it was reported that Pascal dated the actor who played his Game of Thrones character's sworn enemy, Lena Headey.

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