Timothée Chalamet she initially focused on ballet and opera for years before suggesting that both were doomed in a recent interview.
“I was like, woe betide me, but whether you’re working in movies or acting, or pursuing your own thing, I started to get the idea that [movies were]like an opera or a ballet or something. It’s like a dying art or something,” Chalamet, 30, said in a 2019 TikTok clip that resurfaced after his latest comment.
Chalamet made those statements while promoting his 2019 film King. The four-time Oscar nominee cited the cultural discussion surrounding his blockbuster movies Call Me By Your Name again Miss Bird as proof that the cinema was timeless.
TikTok user @thealienstookover explained in the caption that they re-uploaded the images to show that Chalamet has a history of disparaging opera and ballet.
“I took this video on October 1st 2019,” they wrote. “I was excited to see this film and we got his surprise in our theater. With his recent comments about ballet and opera I wanted to check my video. I thought I remembered him saying something different. Unfortunately I was confused and he has been thinking like this for years. Such a shame.”
In February, Chalamet sparked controversy by appearing to dismiss ballet and opera during an interview Matthew McConaughey for Variety.
“Some people want to be happy quickly. I’m in the middle,” they said Marty Supreme admitted the actor. “Because I love people and I’ve done it myself on a talk show, [saying]’Hey, we have to keep the movie theaters alive. We have to keep this species alive.”
He added, “Part of me feels like, if people want to see it, like Barbielike Oppenheimerthey go to see it and go out and go to the top and be proud of it. I don’t want to work in ballet or opera where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive, even though nobody cares anymore.’
It seems that Chalamet saw the shade he was throwing because he quickly gave “respect to the ballet and opera people out there.”
“Damn, I just shot for no reason,” he joked.
Timothée Chalamet in March 2026.
Amy Sussman/Getty ImagesHis recent comments have proven to raise eyebrows especially for some because Chalamet’s mother, Nicole Flenderis a former Broadway dancer.
It didn’t take long for other world-famous ballets and operas to respond to Chalamet. The Metropolitan Opera shared clips via Instagram that show the skilled craftsmanship that goes into the creation of every high-profile opera performance.
Quoting Chalamet, the Met Opera responded on Thursday, March 5, “All respect to the opera (and ballet) people out there. This is yours, @tchalamet.”
“He’ll be singing a different song when live art takes over after the AI takes over. Oh wait. He’s more than just singing,” the Tony winner Laura Benati posted in the Met Opera comments section.
The Los Angeles Opera took a different approach by encouraging Chalamet to see his play Akhnaten while living in the city. Meanwhile, the UK’s Royal Ballet paid tribute to its dancers.
“Every night at the Royal Opera House, thousands of people gather for ballet and opera. For music. For storytelling. For the sheer magic of live performance,” they wrote on Friday, March 6. “If you’d like to reconsider, @tchalamet, our doors are open. ✨#TheRoyalBallet #TheRoyalOpera #RoyalBalletAndOpera.”
Chelsea Handler is not a fan of how Timothée Chalamet handled his Marty Supreme press tour. “He seemed determined to win and be recognized for his good work,” the comedian, 50, said of Chalamet, 30, during an appearance on the Tuesday, January 14, episode of Amanda Hirsch’s “Not Skinny But Not Fat” podcast. Forward […]
Oscar winner Jamie Lee Curtis, Dancing with the Stars pro Sharna Burgess and a popstar The Doja Cat they also showed support for the opera and ballet communities after the controversy.
“Opera is 400 years old. Ballet is 500 years old,” Doja Cat, 30, responded on TikTok on Sunday, March 8. “Someone named Timothée Chalamet – a great guy – had the nerve to say on camera that nobody cares.”
The “Agora Hills” rapper went on to say, “I’m sure you can walk into the opera house right now, the seats will be full, and no one will say a word as the performance goes on because everyone respects it.”
Chalamet did not respond in response.
