7 Forgotten Pedro Pascal Movies and Shows You (Probably) Haven’t Seen

Every decade, Hollywood finds a few actors that the industry is absolutely obsessed with, and audiences start seeing them absolutely everywhere. Over the course of the 2020s, one of those actors has been Pedro Pascal. Born José Pedro Balmaceda Pascal, this Chilean-American star had his breakout role as Oberyn Martell in the fourth season of the HBO classic Game of Thrones. He’s gone nowhere but up from there. From The Mandalorian to The Fantastic Four: First Steps to The Last of Us, Pascal has become an essential face in virtually every major movie franchise in Hollywood.

Like any great actor, though, Pascal also has a pretty long list of severely underappreciated projects. Among them are forgotten TV shows from well before he was a star, like MTV’s Downtown, auteur-driven short films like Pedro Almodóvar‘s Strange Way of Life, and future cult classics like Freaky Tales. Whether they have been forgotten or simply slipped under most people’s radar, these projects are irrefutable proof that if there’s one thing people can’t say about Pedro Pascal, it’s that he doesn’t have range.

1

‘The Uninvited’ (2024)

Image via Rosebud Pictures

Nadia Conners‘ directorial debut, The Uninvited is a dramedy about a stranger who crashes a party, twisting a small gathering upside down and triggering a delightful comedy of errors. Pascal plays Lucian, a Hollywood star, helping to elevate an already very intriguing character study that also stars Walton Goggins and Elizabeth Reaser. It may not be one of the best comedies of the 2020s, but The Uninvited sure does deserve a lot more love than it typically gets nowadays — which is to say, almost none at all.

It’s a thoughtful, beautifully human story about Hollywood’s obsession with aging and traditional gender roles. It establishes Conners as a fascinating voice to look out for going forward, and it features one of Pascal’s most seductive performances to date. It’s a bit too reliant on clichés to call it a masterpiece, but with the phenomenal Pascal performance that it offers and its fun, indie vibe, it’s a decently smart and emotionally resonant satire that even those who aren’t Pedro Pascal completionists should check out.

2

‘Animal’ (2021–2022)

Image via Netflix

There are many Netflix-original nature documentaries for fans of the genre to enjoy, and one of the most awfully underappreciated is Animal. Each of its eight episodes is narrated by a different actor, with a stacked cast that includes Anthony Mackie, Bryan Cranston, Rebel Wilson, and — of course — the man of the hour, Pedro Pascal himself. The episode that Pascal narrates is the fourth and final episode of the series’s first season, “Octopus,” which follows the giant Pacific octopus and how it leverages its intelligence to survive in the changing seas and oceans.

With some gorgeous, vibrantly colorful footage; exciting, well-researched explanations of the behavior of the giant Pacific octopus and other cephalopods, like the cuttlefish; Jasha Klebe‘s fantastic music; and Pascal’s excellent narration, the episode — just like Animal as a whole — is a must-see for lovers of animals, the ocean, and nature. Come for Pedro Pascal, stay for the stunning visuals and fascinating insights into the ocean’s fauna.

3

‘Lights Out’ (2011)

Image via FX

Holt McCallany stars in the boxing drama Lights Out as Patrick “Lights” Leary, a former heavyweight champion from New Jersey who is considering a comeback. Pedro Pascal appears in four of the show’s 13 episodes as Omar “The Armenian Avenger” Assarian, a young up-and-coming boxer who’s the Leary family gym’s big hope for a new champion after Lights’ retirement. He’s not a huge character, but his arc from a cocky prospect to a man able to accept the fear inherent to stepping in the ring after a big loss is one of the series’ most interesting elements.

It’s one of the best boxing shows out there, laser-focused on the psychological toll that naturally comes with boxing. McCallany is flawless in the lead role, the boxing scenes are phenomenally filmed, and the airtight writing is fantastic, but Pascal’s character and performance really shouldn’t be taken for granted, either. He shows admirable depth and range in what’s essentially a relatively small secondary role, bringing a lot of thematic sharpness to what’s easily one of the most terribly underappreciated sports shows of the 21st century.

4

‘Strange Way of Life’ (2023)

Image via BTeam Pictures

Pedro Almodóvar is perhaps the most popular and hyper-acclaimed Spanish filmmaker of modern times, a master of his craft who, for the vast majority of his career, has only worked in Spanish. That changed in 2020, however, when he directed his first English-language picture: the short film The Human Voice, starring Tilda Swinton. He followed that up with another one of the greatest short films of the 2020s: Strange Way of Life, a Western starring Pedro Pascal and Ethan Hawke as two gunslingers who reunite after more than two decades apart.

Almodóvar came up with Strange Way of Life as a sort of response to Brokeback Mountain. Like it, it’s a queer Western that studies masculinity at its very core, but sprinkled with the kind of carnal yearning and colorful sense of seduction that characterizes Almodóvar’s filmography. Pascal and Hawke are both incredible in the lead roles, and the chemistry they share is so off the charts that it’s enough to make this 31-minute-long film worth watching. Tender, romantic, tantalizingly beautiful, and thematically complex, it’s a must-see for all those who love Westerns, romantic dramas, and/or any of the creatives involved with the project — including Pascal.

5

‘Downtown’ (1999–2000)

Image via MTV

Back in the 1990s, MTV did a lot of experimentation with animation. One of the results was Downtown, a sitcom following the everyday lives of a group of young adults living in the East Village of New York City. It’s one of the best animated series for adults, a criminally underrated classic that was inspired by Ralph Bakshi‘s films from the early 1970s. Designed to serve as a time capsule of ’90s New York culture going forward, Downtown has indeed aged beautifully as such.

Although MTV canceled the series after only one season due to a wide variety of reasons, it nevertheless remains as one of the best adult-oriented cartoons of the ’90s. Pascal, back when he was still credited in projects as Pedro Balmaceda, appears as a nameless voice in the third episode of the show, “Hot Spot.” Though Pascal’s voice is instantly recognizable even over two decades later, it’s a pretty small role. Nevertheless, it’s one imbued with nostalgia, and if it gets fans of the actor to discover the forgotten charm of Downtown, then it was fully worth it.

6

‘Freaky Tales’ (2024)

Image via Lionsgate

Directed by Captain Marvel‘s Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, Freaky Tales is a film that feels like it was designed in a lab to become a beloved cult classic — and that’s meant as a compliment. A love letter to Oakland, California, and late ’80s pop culture, this exquisitely fun B-picture features several interconnected stories. One of those follows Pedro Pascal’s Clint, a man trying to escape his former life of crime who gets pulled back into the game after someone kills his pregnant wife. It’s one of Pascal’s most complex and poignant roles, and it’s a shame that it has gone under so many people’s radar.

Pascal’s deeply sad yet charming performance, and his fascinatingly mysterious and compelling storyline, are both among the best elements of Freaky Tales. On top of that, the film is visually delightful, full of thrilling action sequences, and flawlessly directed. If this is Boden and Fleck’s attempt at redemption after the divisive flick that was Captain Marvel, then it was an entirely effective one. There are several crime movies from the last 10 years destined to become cult classics, and Freaky Tales is right up there as one of the most certain.

7

‘If Beale Street Could Talk’ (2018)

Image via Annapurna Pictures

Barry Jenkins followed up the tremendous artistic achievement that was the Oscar-winning Moonlight with a film that, though far more overlooked, is every bit as tender, beautiful, and nearly-perfect. If Beale Street Could Talk is based on the novel by James Baldwin, and it follows a young woman, Tish, who seeks to clear the name of her wrongly prosecuted lover, Fonny, and prove his innocence before the birth of their child.

It’s one of the most underrated drama masterpieces of the 2020s, full of engaging characters played by an all-star cast that — of course — includes Pedro Pascal. Appearing in a single scene toward the end of the movie, the actor plays Pietro, the partner of the woman who falsely accused Fonny of rape. Yes, it’s a small role, but Pascal gives it his all, perfectly holding his own against Regina King, who won an Oscar for her performance. Quiet and dramatic, his performance may be one of the smallest of his modern-day career, but it also happens to be one of his strongest.