HE was flying high as Hollywood’s golden boy, but Timothee Chalamet has suddenly fallen from grace by dismissing ballet and opera as arts “no one cares about”.
Now, as big industry names round on the Marty Supreme actor accusing him of being disrespectful,
Timothee Chalamet might have fumbled his role as Hollywood’s golden boy actorCredit: Getty
Actor Timothee Chalamet fell dramatically from grace after dismissing ballet and opera as arts that ‘no one cares about’Credit: YouTube/Variety
Timothee and Leonardo DiCaprio at the Golden Globes in JanuaryCredit: Getty
To do that, could learn from — a man who knows all about going from heart-throb to respected A-lister.
He realised early in his 35-year career that he should steer clear of controversy.
That is a lesson Timothee could take on board after sparking an outcry with his ballet and opera jibe in the run-up to Sunday’s .
A string of huge names hit out at his remarks. cautioned against throwing ballet and opera “under a bus”.
warned Timothee, “Be careful, boy”. Meanwhile, as he discussed movies and concerts leaving audiences feeling good, filmmaker made a subtle dig, saying: “And it happens in ballet and opera, by the way”.
Leo certainly knows from experience what Timothee is going through.
In his younger days, he had a reputation for being a party lover and was called an “androgynous wimp” by the late US Senator John McCain.
But he stopped acting wildly in public and talking about his personal life, instead focusing on earning the respect of directors such as Martin
Scorsese. As the actor himself once said: “They don’t want heroes, what they want is to see you fall.”
An insider told gossip columnist Rob Shuter: “Leo understands the game. Protect the work, stay professional, and don’t let the circus become the story.”
If Timothee heeds the advice, it might mean ending his three-year relationship with
TV reality star — who is better known than her boyfriend and has often overshadowed him — stole his spotlight at the Oscars in a very revealing dress.
Chalamet was snubbed for major honours for his role in Marty SupremeCredit: Alamy
Timothee has turned to Leonardo to help him steer clear of controversyCredit: Newspix
Chalamet with Zendaya in DuneCredit: Alamy
Leo, on the other hand, has dated a lot of famous women, many supermodels, but none has been a bigger name than him.
And he never stayed with any of his girlfriends long enough for the relationship to become a story more important than his movies.
Perhaps here, too, Timothee could take a leaf out of Leo’s book by not letting his other half take a share of the main spotlight, even though she is in huge demand herself.
DiCaprio, nominated for One Battle After Another, was perfectly happy to spend the evening with his girlfriend Vittoria Ceretti.
But when it came to the red-carpet frenzy, he was on his own.
Last autumn, there were split rumours after Timothee’s work schedule left them little time to be together.
But Kylie has been at his side throughout this year’s award season, where he picked up Best Actor gongs at the Golden Globes and Critics’ Choice Awards for table tennis movie
Body language experts say they noticed tension between the pair at the Oscars.
But that might have been because Timothee was gutted to miss out on the industry’s biggest accolade again, having been nominated three times in the past eight years.
Leonardo is also no stranger to clapping politely when someone else’s name is pulled from the golden envelope.
He has had eight Oscar nods and triumphed once.
Timothee did a good job of appearing pleased when Michael B Jordan received the Best Actor Oscar for his brilliant performance playing twins in the vampire movie Sinners.
Sources, though, say he is fuming about losing out. For most of this year’s awards season, Timothee was favourite to win, thanks to the commitment and energy he showed in Marty Supreme.
He spent seven years learning to play table tennis and displayed incredible chemistry with in the comedy drama.
Timothee has been dating beauty Kylie JennerCredit: Getty
The star with Elle Fanning in A Complete UnknownCredit: AP
And he was honest enough to admit he wanted to get his hands on the statuette at a question and answer session in London last month.
That is a no-no in La La Land, where actors and actresses are supposed to pretend they do not care about the plaudits and are just performing for the “art”.
Timothee acknowledged his reputation for wanting an Oscar too much, adding: “Sometimes, I feel like I’ve been misinterpreted in my quest. All these award things, they supplement the movie.”
His willingness to promote films, gaining publicity by turning up for the London premiere of A Complete Unknown last year on an electric Lime Bike or wearing outlandish suits, has led to trolling.
But it was a chat with Interstellar co-star at the University of Texas last month that got him in hot water.
Defending audience-pleasing action in movies, Timothee said: “I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive, even though no one cares about this any more’ — all respect to the ballet and opera people out there.”
Appearing to realise the potential repercussions of his dig, he quickly added: “I just lost 14 cents in viewership. I just took shots for no reason.”
When the clip hit social media, the backlash was swift and unforgiving.
Opera and ballet companies made fun of the “all respect” line and mocked him for thinking he could work in those highly trained professions.
It was also noted that his mum and sister studied ballet.
Whoopi Goldberg said: “You come from a dance family, so when you c**p on somebody else’s art form, it doesn’t feel good.”
added: “He’s a talented kid and he made a stupid comment that he’s going to regret.”
And Spielberg said that we want the feeling of “community” in movies, ballet and opera to go on “for ever”.
Stage actor Nathan Lane was the most scathing, saying: “People will be going to see Swan Lake and La Traviata long after someone at a dinner party says, ‘Who was Timothee Chalamet?’.”
The extent to which the controversy affected Timothee’s Oscar hopes is debatable. Most of the votes were in by the time it blew up.
It was also noted that the actor has a point because major opera and ballet companies need public subsidy to survive.
Timothee managed to laugh off gags made during the Oscar ceremony about his comments.
Host Conan O’Brien joked: “Security is extremely tight tonight . . . I’m told there’s concern about attacks from the opera and ballet communities. They’re just mad you left out jazz.”
Timothee’s main problem now is that the public seem to be tiring of him.
It was sweet when he turned up at a Timothee Chalamet lookalike contest 18 months ago, but now he is “overexposed”.
When the trailer for the third Dune movie launched this week, Timothee wasn’t there, despite playing the sci-fi blockbuster’s hero Paul Atreides.
Co-stars including and Robert Pattinson were in attendance.
It might be a good moment for him to take a work break in order to prevent audience fatigue.
But that will not be possible when the £150million Dune is set to be one of 2026’s biggest movies.
Anyone hoping Timothee goes away for good will be disappointed.
Having studied at LaGuardia school in New York, which inspired the TV hit Fame, he is ambitious.
Caitlin Gann, his co-star in a production of the play Sweet Charity in 2012, said: “He was determined and he had a lot of drive.”
Timothee craves a career as long and successful as Leo DiCaprio, whose latest movie won Best Picture at the Oscars.
To achieve that, it is probably time to end the publicity stunts.
No more wearing film merchandising or matching dayglo orange outfits with his girlfriend.
The Hollywood insider said: “Timothee is extremely talented. But if he wants a long career, it’s time for him to grow up.”
And if he has listened to Leonardo DiCaprio, we can expect to see a much more reserved Timothee in the future.
Leo certainly knows from experience what Timothee is going throughCredit: Getty
Eze Chidiebere Paul
I'm dedicated to creating high-quality content that informs, inspires, and delights. If you have any questions or suggestions, don't hesitate to get in touch. Happy reading!
