Emily Ota | Head Editor
March 13, 2026
One of the most-loved actors of the 2010s and 2020s, Timothée Chalamet, has been facing his first real controversy since the birth of his fame. In a recent interview with Matthew McConaughey, Chalamet claimed that he “doesn’t want to be working in ballet or opera or…things where it’s like ‘hey keep this thing alive’ even though no one cares about them anymore.”
No matter Chalamet’s real intentions behind his words, it is important to note that opera and ballet are still cherished art forms today that have no intention of dying. Both art forms have been around for hundreds of years for a reason; they both take insane talent and have a whole movement behind them. The National Endowment of the Arts states that 18.1 percent of Americans enjoy opera today. Opera serves as the base for modern theater and some subsections of singing today, meaning Chalamet’s own profession stems from it. Additionally, ballet is also still prominent. Younger generations take part in ballet, including Repertory Ballet San Clemente in our own city. Timeless shows such as the Nutcracker are seen worldwide every year. North America sold a whopping 1.4 million tickets to ballet performances in 2023. Despite these stats and Chalamet’s own mother being a ballerina, he continued to bash the art.
Clearly, this hot-take upset thousands of people around the world, and the interview clip quickly gained traction online. While many are attacking Chalamet for being insensitive and egotistical, die hard fans are backing him up, creating a sharp division in the pop culture fan base. For example, junior Makenzie Drunasky, who has been a fan of Chalamet since 2019, asserted that she feels “it is less of a personality change and more like the natural evolution of a serious actor.” Drunasky argued that Chalamet is still how he always has been on the inside, but has to adopt a more formal tone in interviews since he has taken on bigger roles and matured with age. He simply cannot be the same silly seventeen year old self that people want to see–he is now a thirty-year-old man. Despite some support for Chalamet, creators on social media platforms are posting sad edits with Chalamet’s hurtful words playing over his old performances. These videos almost look like memorial posts as though he has passed away, encapsulating the idea that his past self died, and his new A-list fame has replaced him.
Multiple fans have made comments like “RIP Timmy Tim, you would have hated Timothée Jenner,” a nod to his ancient alter-ego and a stab at his current girlfriend, Kylie Jenner of the Kardashian family. People angered by Chalamet’s “new self” have almost immediately jumped to blame Jenner, most likely due to her association with her family. The Kardashians are a family of successful women who paved their way through reality TV, and they are known for being extremely rich and petty among themselves. Their show strictly displayed how their family functions from day to day, but it still had the effect of painting the women as self-centered just because they are successful. This stereotype is deeply rooted in misogyny and jealousy from conservatives who cannot imagine a world where self-earned women have turned a profit for themselves. Lilly Rasic, junior at SCHS, agreed that people usually think the Kardashians are “dumb and have no talents,” but went on to say, “if a man did everything they did, he would be called a genius.”
In a fast-progressing world, it is important to stay true to the facts and not let popular opinions sway your own perspective. Whether the clip of Chalamet was taken out of context, came out wrong, or was meant to be disrespectful, the reaction from fans shows what the real issue is that needs to be focused on: the normalization of misogyny in our society.
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