‘I Want To Be One Of The Greats.' Timothée Chalamet Got Way More Honest Than Most Actors About His Goals, And Fans Have Thoughts About His Mentality

We’re now just under a week from the biggest night in movies. The 2025 Academy Awards will ultimately decide the greatest movies and performances of the year. If we learned anything after last night’s SAG Awards, it’s that Timothée Chalamet has a good chance of winning and that he really, really wants it.

Chalamet won the Best Actor prize at last night’s awards show where the Screen Actors Guild recognizes its own. During his acceptance speech, Chalamet didn’t just say he was happy to win the award but admitted that such an award was a step on the path to his ultimate goal, being one of the all-time greats in his field. Check out his comments below.

It was a somewhat surprising statement from Timothée Chalamet. While there are likely many actors who strive to achieve greatness, it’s rarely spoken about so openly. By and large, the actor’s speech is being met positively by fans, who appreciate seeing what drives him.

Timothée Chalamet has put together an incredible career at a young age. He’s one of the biggest stars of the day, something he has achieved without appearing in the sort of blockbusters that traditionally make actors stars in the eyes of the public. Clearly, as fans are now saying, his goal is something else. One fan used a meme from Little Women to respond, posting:

While it may be surprising to hear Timothée Chalamet talk about his desire to be a great actor, it makes perfect sense when one looks at the work he has done and the accomplishments he has already achieved. Chalamet is nominated for his second Academy Award before the age of 30 for A Complete Unknown, in which he plays music icon Bob Dylan and he’s in a strong position to win the award. It seems quite clear he’s got the Oscar in his sights right now.

Fans seem to have really appreciated Chalamet’s honesty. In his speech, he mentioned people both in his own sphere of acting as well as athletes who did great things. He sees their success as aspirational and is simply working toward achieving that same success.

Unlike in sports, being “one of the greats” in acting is a difficult thing to gauge. Chalamet admits that in his world it’s a much more subjective conversation. Having said that, award nominations and wins are certainly a way to tell what the industry thinks of somebody, and in that way, Chalamet is certainly in a strong position.

It’s not exactly news to say that Timothée Chalamet is probably hoping he wins an Oscar next Sunday, but with his speech last night, he was likely a bit more honest about it than most. If part of being a great actor is about being willing to make yourself vulnerable, Chalamet has certainly done that, showing the world what his goals are.

It will likely be decades before we can ever begin to answer the question of whether Timothée Chalamet is “one of the greats” in Hollywood. A lot can happen between now and then, but knowing what his goals are, it seems clear that win or lose next week, either result will simply fuel his career going forward.

You can follow the next step in Timothée Chalamet's quest for greatness next Sunday when the Academy Awards take place. For the first time, the Oscars will stream live with a Hulu subscription.