Timothée Chalamet is receiving criticism for his recent comments about ballet and opera, with the Oscar nominee saying “nobody cares” about those art forms.
In an on-stage interview with Variety, Chalamet and actor Matthew McConaughey discussed the waning attention span and whether audiences need the initiative in film. The “Dune” and “Marty Supreme” star said he was “in the middle of nowhere” on the issue, before criticizing opera and ballet.
“I don’t want to work in ballet or opera,” Chalamet said. “Things there are like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive, even though nobody cares anymore.’
“All due respect to the ballet and opera people out there,” he said, seeming to see the backlash in his words. “Damn, I just shot for no reason.”
The actor’s comments have invited heated internet attacks from the ballet and opera community.
Megan Fairchild, principal dancer of the New York City Ballet, responded to Chalamet in a video on Instagram, mocking his suggestion that it is possible to be an actor in any field.
“Timmy, I didn’t know you were a world-class dancer or opera singer, who just chose not to continue because acting is so popular,” said Fairchild. “Ballet and opera are not hobbies that people choose to take out for fame.”
“Good luck in the Oscar race. Supporting singers are important. None of this is easy, and there’s no need to put down ballet or opera,” Fairchild wrote in the caption of the video.
The Metropolitan Opera, the LA Opera, and the Royal Ballet and Opera all posted Instagram tributes to Chalamet. The Met posted a video highlighting the work of the actors, designers and stage crew at the opera, writing, “All respect to the opera (and ballet) people out there” and tagging Chalamet in the caption.
The LA Opera posted a photo from the opera “Akhnaten,” now on stage in Los Angeles, with the caption “Sorry, @tchalamet. We could give you free tickets to Akhnaten, but they’re selling out. There are a few seats left if you hurry.”
But the Royal Ballet and Opera, the headquarters of opera in the United Kingdom, gave Chalamet a seat in their audience – while not subtly saying that thousands of visitors gather to catch ballet and opera performances every night.
“If you’d like to rethink, @tchalamet, our doors are open,✨” the post read.
Actors of all stripes slammed Chalamet in the comments section of a video posted by Variety magazine that included the actor’s protest. Soprano Candice Hoyes commented, “Opera doesn’t keep up with the Kardashians.”
“I hope his movies will last for a few hundred years like opera and ballet … that’s why knowing history is so powerful,” he continued.
Opera singer and three-time Grammy Award winner Isabel Leonard criticized Chalamet for filming “cheap actors.” Conductor Alondra de la Parra expressed her hope that Chalamet will “rethink” his idea in the future. “How disappointing to hear him say this when he is an idol to so many young people. I hope he reconsiders and attends a concert, participates in a play, goes to an opera. Then he speaks again,” he wrote.
After his recent comments, some on social media once again mocked Chalamet for wearing a New York City baseball cap in January. “Timothée, we’re confused,” read a post on the dance magazine’s Instagram.
