Natalie Portman and Paul Mescal Giggle, Smoke a Cigarette, and Wear Matching T-Shirts in London

What does it mean??????

Natalie Portman and Paul Mescal
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Natalie Portman and Paul Mescal were spotted having an absolute ball together this week in London.

In photos published by the Daily Mail, the two actors can be seen enjoying a cigarette break together outside Bar 69 in the English capital's Islington neighborhood.

In the pictures, both Portman, 42, and Mescal, 28, can be seen laughing uproariously, clearly delighted with each other's company, and are incidentally both wearing very similar white T-shirts—which makes it look like they had coordinated their outfits, though they almost certainly had not.

Natalie Portman and Benjamin Millepied

Natalie Portman and Benjamin Millepied attend the 2022 Vanity Fair Oscars after-party.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The pictures come just a couple months after the Black Swan actress finalized her divorce from Benjamin Millepied, whom she married in 2012 and who was alleged to have been unfaithful to Portman. They share children Aleph and Amalia.

The two reportedly separated in 2023, with a source telling People in March of this year, "Natalie is coming out of a really tough and painful year but she's come out the other side of it stronger and is finding joy in her family, friends and work."

Speaking of friends... Though I'm sure we can all agree that Portman and Mescal would make one of the most beautiful couples ever, unfortunately for the nosier folks among us, a source told People that they're just friends.

But it's not the first time Portman and Mescal have appeared to really like each other.

In December, the two shared a chat as part of Variety's Actors on Actors series. Mescal kicked off the conversation by telling Portman, "I just want to say how utterly brilliant you are in May December."

Elsewhere, the Thor actress told the Aftersun star, "That’s something I was so impressed by in All of Us Strangers. Your character’s like a dream man. He’s so emotionally available and caring and loving to the point that it was a fantasy. But you manage to make it real."

Paul Mescal and Ayo Edebiri

Paul Mescal has sparked a bunch of dating rumors in his time, including with his friend Ayo Edebiri.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Mescal is pretty universally considered very charming, which means he ends up being linked romantically to a whole bunch of fellow Hollywood stars, though the rumors typically turn out to be unfounded. In his time, fans have speculated that he may be dating the likes of Daisy Edgar-Jones, Angelina Jolie, and Ayo Edebiri, with very little evidence to back up their claims.

Meanwhile, he was actually in a relationship with Phoebe Bridgers between 2020 and 2022.

Iris Goldsztajn
Morning Editor

Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.