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Who Was in Joe Alwyn’s ‘Tortured Man Club’ Group Chat? Meet the Members
Several Taylor Swift fans were convinced that the name of her album, The Tortured Poets Department, is a nod to ex-boyfriend Joe Alwyn’s “Tortured Man Club” group chat. Joe previously revealed the identities of the men who were in the group chat with him – Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott – and fans want to learn more about them.
Who Is Andrew Scott From the ‘Tortured Man Club’ Group Chat?
Andrew is actually the creator of the “Tortured Man Club” group chat, according to Joe. The Conversations With Friends star said that he and Andrew “were both in the Sally Rooney universe and crossed over with Lenny Abrahamson,” during an interview with Variety in December 2022.
However, before Andrew starred as the “hot priest” in the film adaptation of Sally’s book Normal People, he starred in the series Sherlock as Sherlock Holmes’ nemesis, Jim Moriarty, from 2010 to 2017. Andrew said in an interview with The Independent that the role completely changed his career. In 2018, he took on the role of The Priest in Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s series Fleabag.
One month after the album was released, Andrew opened up about the club while speaking to Variety. “Let me tell you what that is!” he told the outlet in May 2024. “They were about to play these tortured characters, and I had played a tortured character in Fleabag. It wasn’t about our own characteristics!”
He then explained that he created the group chat to connect Paul and Joe because they both had starring roles in Sally Rooney adaptations. However, Andrew revealed that the group chat didn’t last long. “I think there were three texts, like, ‘Hey, guys,’” he recalled. “You know those groups that you set up, and they just collapse.”
Who Is Paul Mescal?
Paul’s first role was in Normal People as one of the main characters, Connell Waldron, while Joe starred as Nick in Conversations With Friends. Both Normal People and Conversations With Friends are books written by Sally, and the two men became friends through that connection. Paul’s role in the miniseries earned him a BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor.
Joe has previously said that the Tortured Man Club group chat “is, I guess, a reflection on Connell and Nick,” during an interview with GQ in May 2022.
Why Did Taylor Swift Fans Think the ‘Tortured Man Club’ Inspired ‘TTPD’?
When Taylor announced the name of her album The Tortured Poets Department at the 2024 Grammy Awards, Swifties immediately began to dig for potential clues about the album. Many fans immediately made the connection between TTPD and Joe’s group chat and became convinced that the album would feature songs about Taylor and Joe’s breakup. Social media lit up with fans sharing memes about Joe, Paul and Andrew’s reaction when they learned the name of the album.
Days before The Tortured Poets Department dropped, Taylor dropped hints by the way of Apple Music and revealed one word a day. On April 18, 2024, the complete sentence read, “We hereby conduct this post mortem.”
The clue sent Swifties into a flurry as they began to speculate on the meaning behind the sentence.
“‘WE HEREBY CONDUCT THIS POST MORTEM.’ Her & Joe’s relationship is the dead body. Taylor is the one examining. This album is her report on the examination of their relationship,” a fan summed it up.
However, some fans grew less convinced that the title was inspired by Joe when the album was released. While Taylor has not confirmed who inspired each of the tracks on TTPD, many fans have speculated that most of the album – including the titular song – is about Matty Healy. She had a brief fling with the 1975 frontman shortly after she split from Joe.
