When does fame happen for a celebrity? At what point does the moment where masses of fans band together to propel them to notoriety happen? It's hard to gauge but, most times, it's at a point when they become irresistible to an extent. It's what, these days, is called going viral. Sure an actor can be phenomenal onscreen, but it's about what happens offscreen that solidifies them as a buzz-worthy icon. Pedro Pascal is— most recently— a prime example of this phenomenon.
The actor—though equipped with an extensive repertoire of credited work— is now one of the most celebrated trailblazing actors in Hollywood. From starring in the critically praised series The Last of Us to starring in the epic first live-action Star Wars series The Mandalorian, there's no doubt that Pascal is one of Hollywood's most well-known actors to date.
But off-screen, the actor has garnered the attention of fans for other reasons more closely associated with his physical appearance than his professional work. He has been deemed the "Internet's Daddy" and fans continue to celebrate him as such. Despite his somewhat modest attitude against it, the actor has had quite a bit to say about his newfound status. Here's what Pedro Pascal has said about his fan-appointed status as "Internet Daddy."
7 Pedro Pascal Is The 'Internet's Daddy'
When Pedro Pascal first heard the news about him being appointed the "Internet's Daddy", he was—not only shocked by the term bestowed upon him, but also utterly confused. Television presenter Richard Arnold of Good Morning Britain, got the chance to interview the actor. In the interview, Arnold asked, “What’s it like being dubbed daddy of the internet because you sort of have that paternal relationship with Bella’s character on The Last of Us? What’s it like when the internet takes over?”. The actor was quick to express his confusion. “I’m the daddy of the internet, and I have no kids!” Pascal responded. “So I don’t know what they are talking about.”
Arnold, before rolling footage of the interview with the actor, had an embarrassing slip-up on air. Things did not go as planned on air as he remarked, "I chatted with the man of the moment who is currently also starring in the phenomenal hit The Last of Us, which we love. So I talked to him about his sex...".
The hilarious moment sent the other hosts into a laughing frenzy, while Arnold buried his face in his hands out of embarrassment as he meant to say "success" and not sex. Perhaps he couldn't help it. After all, it is Pedro Pascal.
6 Does Pedro Pascal Like Being Referred To As Zaddy?
When Pedro Pascal appeared on The Graham Norton Show, alongside Shazam! Fury of the God's actress Helen Mirren and West Side Story star Ariana DeBose, he couldn't escape the questions surrounding his newfound popularity among fans. When host Graham Norton asked Pascal if he was enjoying the attention the actor happily responded: "Yeah," before deflecting the subject back to DeBose and her Oscar win. As Norton continued, he asked Pascal to clarify what "Internet Daddy" was, to which the actor quipped, "Me." Pascal then admitted that he was still in the process of understanding what the variations of the term meant. "I'm still trying to figure it out, he said. "There's daddy, there's zaddy..."
DeBose came to the actor's aid, suggesting that the latter term sounded "silver-foxy," speaking to "an air about you," to which Pascal seemed amused and commented, "I'll take it all."
5 What Does 'Daddy' Mean To Pedro Pascal?
Fans of Pedro Pascal were all-too-excited when the actor took Vanity Fair's infamous lie detector test. As he was being fixed into the Velcro straps at the beginning of the interview, the Chilean-American actor quipped, "Just before you put in on me, I just want to say I'm innocent." When asked by why he was nervous to do the test, the actor responded, "Because you're trying to make me nervous, and I'm a vulnerable person, and it works."
But the actor soon changed his tune and became more confident with his responses, specifically when asked to review pictures of other actors and determine whether he was more of a "daddy" than them. After modestly praising other actors who included Michael B. Jordan and Henry Cavill, the actor was shown actor and buddy Oscar Issac. When asked who was the bigger daddy between them, the actor clarified what the true meaning of the term is.
"I'm a bigger daddy than him—I'm older than him," Pascal said. "Although, he's a real daddy— he's got kids and I don't. But daddy is a state of mind, you know what I'm saying? I'm your daddy."
4 Pedro Pascal's Iconic Response To Fan's Tweet
Pedro Pascal was not holding back when he was interviewed on the red carpet the premiere of The Last of Us. Before ET reporter Ash Crosson wrapped the interview up with the actor, she asked him if he knew that he was "the daddy of the internet?" An amused Pascal then went on to read a tweet that corresponded to his "daddy" status. "I call Pedro Pascal a DILF and think he's my cool, sl**ty father," the tweet said.
In an iconic moment, Pascal paused and locked eyes with the camera and said: "Yup, I'm your cool, sl**ty Daddy,". The moment has been regarded as one of the celebrated moments of the actor and has since sent fans into a frenzy over his declaration as their "daddy". As the interview wrapped, the charming actor hugged Crosson, telling her she looked beautiful calling her "sweetie."
3 Pedro Pascal Reinvented His Title As The Mandalorian
Pedro Pascal, while being known for his role as Joel on The Last of Us, has also become widely recognized for his work on American space Western television series The Mandalorian. In an interview with BBC Radio 1, the actor opened up about another title that fans would be enthralled to call him. Film critic Ali Plumb asked the acto, " Are you more comfortable with "Dad-alorian'"or "Man-Dad-lorian?"
Plumb expressed that he preferred "Dad-alorian", and the actor agreed stating that 'Man-Dad-lorian' sounded like it was "three different words", and that "Dad-alorian"— which was reflective of his newfound "daddy" status— goes "altogether".
2 Pedro Pascal As 'Papi Pascal'
After being praised as the "Internet's Daddy", it's only right that Pedro Pascal finds a way to tweak his newfound title. The actor sat down with British national breakfast radio show on Capital, Capital Breakfast with Roman Kemp to discuss a myriad of topics from his work on The Mandalorian, The Last of Us as well as his status as a "daddy".
One of the host's commented, "Fans will either me calling you Mando, they'll be calling you Joel from The Last of Us,— But there is something the fans like to call you and— I'm new to this— is 'daddy.' You are 'Daddy Pascal.'" The Chilean - American actor, after repeating the latter term, was quick to rephrase it as "Papi Pascal," which caused a rouse of laughter among the hosts.
When asked what he made of the fan-driven attention that labeled him "daddy," the actor quipped, "Are you new to it? It's been going on for years?"
1 Is Pedro Pascal Daddy Or Zaddy?
ET reporter Ash Crosson might have found herself in hot water when interviewing Pedro Pascal and his costar Bella Ramsey, who plays his daughter on The Last of Us. Things started to boil over when Crosson attempted to explain the distinction between the terms "daddy" and "zaddy" to a— once again— confused Pascal.
Crosson described Pascal's character Joel as a "zaddy", and when Pascal inquired why, the host explained that it meant "older daddy". The term "older" had seemingly perturbed the actor and Ramsey, noticing his uneasiness, attempted to steer Crosson to redemption by suggesting she say "sexy and older" instead.
Pascal then quipped, "Zaddy is not— there's nothing about old that starts with the letter 'z.'" Pascal then, in the most congenial way, persisted that he was not offended by the comment, which caused Crosson to say, "I did not think I was gonna get into an argument with Pedro Pascal today, but here we are."
Pascal then turned to a comforting Ramsey saying, "I'm already older daddy. I've been daddy for a couple of years, and I'm already older daddy?! I don't even have any kids." Crosson then clarified saying, "We're all your kids," to which Pascal retorted, "That's how I got old so fast!"
