MARCH 6, 2025 | OPINION | By Grant Loui (Staff Writer)
While promoting his film “A Complete Unknown,” Timothée Chalamet captured the hearts and minds of millions for his portrayal of young Bob Dylan. Even though I find celebrity culture appalling, I found myself yet infatuated with Chalamet. I was in a recent conversation about Chalamet that quickly turned into a heated debate. This interaction made me wonder why people I know who actively engage in celebrity culture dislike him, while I, someone who avoids it, felt compelled to defend him.
There is something special about him, and I believe I have figured out what that is: he’s human.
You might think I’m stating the obvious. Still, I would argue that, of anyone in the entertainment industry, Chalamet is one of the few celebrities who feels fully three-dimensional.
To highlight my point, I would like to talk about his speech at the SAG Awards. Now, Chalamet has received quite a bit of backlash for his speech.
“I’m really in the pursuit of greatness. I want to be one of the greats…I know the classiest thing to do would be to downplay the effort I put into this role and how much it means to me…” Chalamet said.
I have heard his speech called egotistical, pretentious and corny. Supporters have called it refreshing and truthful. The best way to describe it? Human. It’s okay to be proud; anyone in his position would feel the same. He isn’t giving a robotic speech downplaying his success. He is letting us know how hard he worked while acknowledging the award doesn’t make him one of the greats but rather adds, as he put it, “a little more fuel” to keep working toward his dream.
Calling Chalamet self-centered ignores that he spent the first minute and a half talking about his mom. We are just so used to the same generic speeches that we overlook the fact that he did acknowledge the cast, crew and his mom. Instead, people only focus on the parts that stood out to them.
Highlighting his exceptional capacity to remain true to himself, he has yet to pigeonhole himself in a niche like so many others. He shows that he is a multifaceted individual. For example, he went on ESPN and demonstrated his sports knowledge by making well-informed predictions — including being the only celebrity to call a massive upset between the University of Ohio and Miami University (Ohio).
Two weeks later, he carried a Beyblade as his accessory to the premiere of “A Complete Unknown.” That same week, he was interviewed in a vinyl shop that showed his impressive music knowledge and wide-ranging taste. He proved this again when hosting and being the musical guest on Saturday Night Live (SNL). He performed Bob Dylan songs to promote the movie, but the songs he performed were his own personal favorites — none of which were in the film.
He got to let loose and be silly on SNL, a reprieve from the more serious Bob Dylan movie. He also made a promo with the finalist from the viral Timothée look-alike competition — an event he actually attended.
If all of that seems random, it’s because it is. Chalamet appeals to me and millions of others because, while promoting his movie, sure, he did the basic interviews and talk show appearances, but he also did things that he wanted or liked to do. More celebrities should learn from his honesty and ability to be himself.