Pedro Pascal arrived at the 2026 Academy Awards with two details drawing immediate attention: a noticeably clean-shaven face and no red-carpet companion. The actor walked into the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles for the 98th Oscars on March 15, sporting a dramatically different look from the facial hair audiences have come to associate with him across film and television roles.
According to Us Weekly, Pascal stepped onto the red carpet wearing a crisp white dress shirt accented with oversized white floral details, paired with high-waisted black tuxedo trousers. He completed the look with glasses and a simple watch.
But it was the absence of his signature beard or stubble that quickly became the night’s most talked-about detail surrounding the actor’s appearance.
Pascal has rarely appeared publicly without facial hair throughout his career. From the mustache he wore in Narcos to the gray beard that became part of his look in The Last of Us, the actor’s facial hair has long been part of his on-screen identity.
Even in the upcoming The Fantastic Four: First Steps, he has been seen with some degree of stubble.
Pascal himself previously suggested that going completely clean-shaven was something he hoped to avoid. During a 2025 interview with LADbible, he reflected on appearing without facial hair in Wonder Woman 1984.
“I grow such sh*t facial hair, but if I were to shave it all off, I really look very awful,” he said at the time.
He added that he was so uncomfortable with the look in the film that he had avoided repeating it unless it became necessary for a role.
The actor’s appearance at the Oscars also came at a time when his personal life was receiving renewed attention.
Photos and short videos from those outings showed the pair walking together, attending a movie screening, and exploring neighborhoods side by side. Neither Pascal nor Olarra has publicly addressed the sightings.
At the Oscars, however, Pascal appeared alone as he joined the lineup of presenters for the evening. The actor took the stage alongside Sigourney Weaver as part of the ceremony’s group of presenters.
