After desperate-to-win Timothee Chalamet‘s turn in Marty Supreme failed to secure him the best actor Oscar on Sunday night, he can only blame the loss on his other recent performances – appearing as himself on every red carpet and envelope opening in Tinseltown.
Overexposed on the campaign trail with his unfathomable, pneumatic girlfriend Kylie Jenner, he was hawking the 1950s ping-pong flick harder than a Meghan Markle jam launch.
The result? The once-edgy thespian appeared a cynical sellout – his golden boy brand tarnished by tacky stunts and sly disses that suggested an ego bigger than Kylie’s long-rumored butt job.
Everyone knows the golden rule for nominees is to keep their public declarations as safe as a Miss World winner’s speech but pleased-with-himself Timothee was a little loose-lipped.
In a Variety and CNN town hall conversation with Matthew McConaughey in February, the 30-year-old Dune star chose to take a swipe at other art forms.
‘I don’t want to be working in ballet, or opera, or things where it’s like, “Hey, keep this thing alive, even though like no one cares about this any more,”‘ he said at the event held at the University of Texas.
‘All respect to all the ballet and opera people out there,’ he added before signing off with a ‘comedic’ warbly singing note.
Oh dear. Add to the mix the never-ending infantile promotional stunts – from a rapping cameo with EsDeeKid to wearing large, orange ping-pong ball masks – and it was all quite a departure for the former cultural anthropology major once prone to deep musings.
After desperate-to-win Timothee Chalamet’s turn in Marty Supreme failed to secure him the best actor Oscar on Sunday night, he can only blame the loss on his other recent performances
Overexposed on the campaign trail with his unfathomable, pneumatic girlfriend Kylie Jenner, he was hawking the 1950s ping-pong flick harder than a Meghan Markle jam launch
The never-ending infantile promotional stunts were quite a departure for the former cultural anthropology major, once prone to deep musings
And what to unpick from the outburst that got so many in a spin? The casual slapdown of two art forms with a near-collective 1,000-year history.
What about the arrogance that ‘he wouldn’t want to do either’, rather than any consideration that he may not have the talent or the discipline?
Not to mention the surprising lack of respect and solidarity for his fellow performing artists. Incidentally, ballet star Misty Copeland helped to promote Marty Supreme in a joint Instagram post with the film’s official account in November after she was approached by Chalamet.
And what was Chalamet really saying? That any art form that isn’t viral or without a blockbuster budget is pointless?
I suppose the ‘bigger the better’ mantra is bound to take hold when you’re surrounded by the inflated assets of billionaire Kylie and the extended Kardashian clan.
Posing in matching orange leather ensembles at the Marty Supreme premiere in December, like a cut-price 1990s Posh and Becks, the odd union continues to chip away at the Chalamet brand.
Predictably, on the cusp of the acting world’s biggest night, the 28-year-old mom of two ramped up the exposure with a conveniently timed nearly-nude spread in the latest edition of Vanity Fair.
And she was on her usual duties on Oscar night – flashing the flesh in a plunging red gown and pawing away at Timmy’s bum-fluff tache.
Meanwhile, Chalamet rarely missed an opportunity in recent months to remind the Oscar committee of his method-acting-style commitment, from mastering table tennis to that ultimate sacrifice – refusing a butt double in a spanking scene.
Yes, the rear that you see being whacked by a paddle on screen is the very one through which he increasingly talks.
‘I’m not just hawking this to you guys – but this isn’t just a movie sell, this is just amazing,’ he droned on the Jimmy Fallon Show back in December while decked out in the film’s branded jacket.
‘Marty Supreme dream big, Marty Supreme Christmas day, if you put your butt in the seat, you won’t regret it, Marty Supreme is the one man. Marty Supreme Christmas day you know.’
Cue the indulgent whoops from the fan faithful.
Posing in matching orange leather ensembles, like a cut price 90s Posh and Becks at the Marty Supreme premiere in December, the odd union continues to chip away at the Chalamet brand
Chalamet rarely missed an opportunity in recent months to remind the Oscar committee of his method-acting-style commitment, from mastering table tennis to that ultimate sacrifice – refusing a butt double in a spanking scene
I’m sure Chalamet believes he’s fated to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Al Pacino and Robert De Niro – men who generally let their talent do the talking rather than running an elevator pitch for their wares.
In truth, for all of Chalamet’s scene-stealing turns in Little Women and Call Me by Your Name, he has never looked more of a try-hard pretender, especially when set against his notably low-key rival, Michael B Jordan, who won the Best Actor gong for playing twins Smoke and Stack in Sinners.
Of course, some will argue that Chalamet’s hard-sell approach was the future of movie marketing, that a film about ping-pong needed to work hard to engage the clickbait generation. But that would be too generous a take.
The backlash against him felt broad for good reason – an organic reaction against his entitlement, gimmicks and a force-fed publicity blitz that simply hit the wrong note.
Truth be told, Chalamet has never needed a slice of humble pie more badly. With this Oscar snub, he has been handed his just desserts.