Pedro Pascal Found Learning Cello for 'Behemoth!' To Be 'Hell,' Calls It the 'Hardest Thing I've Ever Done Creatively'

Pedro Pascal described learning the cello for his role in the upcoming film Behemoth! as an intensely difficult experience, calling it "hell" and the "hardest thing I’ve ever done creatively." The film, written and directed by Tony Gilroy, premiered at the New York Film Festival on October 2.

Pascal stars as Alex Serian, a renowned cellist who returns to Los Angeles to care for his ailing mother. He takes a less prestigious gig as a studio musician for Hollywood film scores, and the movie explores his life through non-linear flashbacks.

At a press conference following the film's premiere, Pascal shared that mastering the cello was a consuming process. "The cello was the main character of my life for several weeks leading up to shooting," he said, adding that he took the instrument with him everywhere on Gilroy's advice. "Everything surprised me. It was hell. And heaven."

He elaborated on the physical and technical demands of learning the instrument on an accelerated timeline. "It was incredible to be in lessons again, with another artist, for one. Then, the physical challenge of it, the meticulousness around it, and having to fast-track things—like, you’re supposed to spend a year learning how to hold the bow correctly. I had a week. And then we had to get into the bowing, and the vibrato."

Gilroy recalled an early conversation with Pascal about the commitment required. "We didn’t have much time, so it was a real come-to-Jesus meeting," Gilroy said. "It was like a three-hour pre-nup in a bar. Like, look we don’t have much time. This is what we need. This is what you need. If you can’t do it, then the only wrong answer is ‘yes,’ if you don’t really mean it."

Pascal admitted his initial response was uncertain. "He was like, ‘Are you going to be able to do it?’ I was like, ‘I don’t know!'" Gilroy confirmed that this honest uncertainty was the "right answer."

Pascal stated that this feeling of not knowing persisted throughout filming, even as he crammed for a final scene involving Mozart. "It was a joy, but it was the hardest thing that I’ve done, creatively, for a part," he concluded.

Behemoth! is scheduled to open in select U.S. theaters on December 4, 2026.