Over the course of a few short years, Timothee Chalamet has quickly become one of the biggest young actors in Hollywood. Notably with his Oscar-nominated lead, along with his stellar work in movies like Lady Bird, Interstellar, Beautiful Boy, and, most recently, last year's Little Women, the rising star has turned into a marquee idol practically overnight, not to mention a heart-throb and celebrated actor in his own right. With the gifted performer proving his talents in a number of exciting new movies, let's explore a few interesting details about Chalamet's early start and continued career success.
Timothee Chalamet Is Fluent In French And English, And He Holds Dual Citizenship
Timothee Chalamet was born in Manhattan and raised in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. However, Chalamet has dual citizenship in both America and France, and he's fluent in both English and French as well. The son of a UNICEF editor and real estate broker/former dancer, Timothee Chalamet spent a good bit of his youth in New York but he also spent summers in the small French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, which is where his grandparents lived. In an interview with Indiewire to discuss Call Me By Your Name, Chalamet claimed that spending a sizable amount of time in France gave him cross-cultural identity issues, saying that he'd become the "french version" of himself while abroad, to the point where he would even dream in French.
Timothee Chalamet Studied Cultural Anthropology Before Acting
While Timothee Chalamet got an early start in acting, appearing in various short films, plays, and television projects, including Homeland in 2012, for which he was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance By An Ensemble in a Drama Series, Chalamet didn't initially go to school for acting when the time came for higher education. Rather, at age 17, he went to Columbia University to study cultural anthropology. Though these studies didn't last long. One year later, he transferred to New York University's Gallatin School of Individual Study to pursue his acting ambitions.
Timothee Chalamet Made His Feature Film Debut In 2014's Men, Women, And Children
After years of working on plays, short films, and television shows, Timothee Chalamet finally made the leap to the big screen in his feature film debut, 2014's Men, Women, and Children. Directed by Jason Reitman (Juno, Up in the Air), the cautionary tale of online dangers, adapted from the book of the same name by Chad Kultgen, featured a talented ensemble that included Adam Sandler, Rosemarie DeWitt, Jennifer Garner, Ansel Elegort, Kaitlyn Dever, Dean Norris, and Judy Greer. It looked like a surefire win. Nevertheless, Men, Women and Children was both critically and commercially panned.
Timothee Chalamet Auditioned For The Neon Demon, Theory of Everything And Several Other High-Profile Titles
Timothee Chalamet is only one man. Ultimately, as a rising actor, he has gone through the audition process several times, and he doesn't always walk away with the part. It happens. Nevertheless, while he was still climbing the ladder of Hollywood, he auditioned for a few noteworthy movies, including, but not limited to, Nicolas Winding Refn's The Neon Demon, Tim Burton's Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children, and The Theory of Everything, but he didn't walk away with those respective roles.
It should be noted that many of these auditions came shortly after his role in Christopher Nolan's Interstellar, the high-profile film that Chalamet thought would possibly be his big breakthrough, but it wouldn't be until 2017's Lady Bird and Call Me By Your Name, respectively, that the actor would become the household name he is today. Sometimes, you just have to wait for good fortune to find you.
Timothee Chalamet Received Acclaim For His Award-Nominated Stage Performance In Prodigal Son In 2016
Outside of his work on the big and small screen, Timothee Chalamet has also impressed on the stage. Specifically, John Patrick Shanley's production of his autobiographical play, Prodigal Son, in 2016 earned a great deal of praise, particularly for Chalamet as a young Shanley, who is portrayed as a misfit kid from the Bronx who goes to a prestigious prep school in New Hampshire in 1963. The actor also garnered awards consideration; Chalamet was nominated for the Drama League Award for Distinguished Performer and he won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Play.
Timothee Chalamet Became The Third-Youngest Best Actor Nominee With Call Me By Your Name
2017 was a big year for Timothee Chalamet. After years of proving himself in minor TV roles, acclaimed stage roles, and overlooked movies, Timothee Chalamet finally hit the big time with both Greta Gerwig's Lady Bird and Luca Guadagnino's Call Me By Your Name. The former found the actor playing Kyle Scheible, the hipster love interest to our lead protagonist. The supporting turn gained great praise in a talented ensemble, but it was ultimately his lead role in Call Me By Your Name that truly propelled his career. He was nominated for Best Actor, and he became the third-youngest performer to be nominated in that category in Oscar history. Additionally, he was the youngest Best Actor nominee since Mickey Rooney in 1939. Surely, a hell of a feat.
Timothee Chalamet Will Play The Lead Role in Denis Villeneuve's Dune
This year, Timothee Chalamet has a couple very exciting new films set to be released throughout the next few months. Up next is Wes Anderson's The French Dispatch, wherein he plays the role of the mustachioed student revolutionary, Zeffirelli, in an outstanding ensemble that also includes Elisabeth Moss, Owen Wilson, Benicio del Toro, Adrien Brody, Lea Seydoux, Jeffrey Wright, Edward Norton, and several others. Additionally, Chalamet plays the lead role in the newest cinematic adaptation of Frank Herbert's sci-fi epic, Dune, from acclaimed director Denis Villeneuve (Blade Runner 2049, Arrival).
Timothee Chalamet Will Become Bob Dylan In A New Biopic
Additionally, Timothee Chalamet is currently signed on to appear in Going Electric, which is a biopic centered around the younger years of Bob Dylan as he became a folk icon. Set to be directed by James Mangold (Logan, Ford v. Ferrari), this is certainly a movie that could be a future award contender if done well, though it's unclear what the status of the movie is at this time. After the announcement was made last month about this forthcoming film, it was revealed in February that Mangold is expected to take over directing duties for Steven Spielberg on the long-promised Indiana Jones 5. Whether or not that puts this movie in a state of flux is left unclear. Nevertheless, if the drama come together, this should be a great role for Chalamet.
At just 24 years old, Timothee Chalamet is continuing to impress moviegoers everywhere with his tender, soulful performances in a number of beloved, acclaimed new movies. Which Timothee Chalamet role is your favorite? Which new movie of his are you most looking forward to? Let us know below!
