&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "'I’m shocked': Timothée Chalamet faces criticism for saying 'no one cares about ballet and opera")
Timothée Chalamet is currently facing backlash on social media for a comment he made earlier on ballet and opera during a public conversation. Several artists and netizens have trolled him over the resurfaced viral video.
What's the controversy?
It was during a Variety and CNN town hall event, which was held at the University of Texas at Austin, where Chalamet and Matthew McConaughey were discussing modern filmmaking and whether viewers can still enjoy slower storytelling.
During the discussion, Chalamet stated that younger viewers still appreciate serious cinema, but while explaining the challenge to keep certain art forms relevant, he made a joke about ballet and opera.
"It does take you having to wave a flag of, 'Hey, this is a serious movie,' or something, and some people do want to be entertained and quickly," Chalamet said. "I'm really right in the middle, Matthew. I admire people, and I've done it myself, who go on a talk show and say, 'Hey, we've got to keep movie theaters alive, we've gotta keep this genre alive,' and another part of me feels like if people want to see it, like Barbie, like Oppenheimer, they're going to go see it and go out of their way to be loud and proud about it."
Trending Stories
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
National Handloom Day 2026: From Alia Bhatt to Samantha Ruth Prabhu; Actresses who celebrated India's textile heritage as brides
)
The Royals enter the Doctor Who universe: King Charles and Queen Camilla beam into Commonwealth Games in TARDIS
)
Unitree Robotics targets $9 billion valuation in landmark IPO backed by DeepSeek and Tencent
)
India names 27 sites in Arunachal Pradesh
)
Bharat Bhhagya Viddhaata OTT: When will Kangana Ranaut's film stream online?
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
How many soldiers operate one S-400 battery?
)
Shakib Al Hasan ready to return to Bangladesh—under one condition
)
‘Fake news’: MEA rejects report claiming India sought defence pact with Israel after Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey deal
)
Rockstar to unveil GTA 6 extended look ahead of November launch
)
Russia forms Ukrainian Volunteer Spetsnaz Brigade to fight Ukraine
)
Drug-resistant fungus that hides in hair and enters bloodstream reported in 23 US states
)
Technology transfer deal boosts India's defence manufacturing ambitions
)
Border row erupts in Europe after Ceuta crossings, Spain imposes border controls on Italy
)
Morale plummets on USS Abraham Lincoln: Are US sailors reaching a breaking point? | GRAVITAS
)
'Security can't be bought with Pakistan, Turkey deal': Iran tells Saudi Arabia
)
Baba Vanga's 2026 prophecy: 2 predictions 'already came true', 3 terrifying ones remain. Details inside
)
Colombia’s new president Abelardo de la Espriella vows to ‘defeat narco-terrorists’, signals hardline shift
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
New Friday OTT releases (August 7, 2026): Operation Safed Sagar, Vadhandhi, Main Vaapis Aaunga- 6 movies and TV shows on Netflix, Prime Video and more
)
Squadron Leader Bhawana Kanth scripts history as Indian Air Force gets its first woman ‘Top Gun’ pilot
)
RSS says Gen Z protests reflect genuine distress
)
Trump says Iranian school bombing photos could be AI-generated - 'I don’t think...'
)
IAF officer held for sharing sensitive information in 'honey trap' case, booked under Official Secrets Act
)
Stray Kids under scrutiny? Fans react to Grammy submission silence after BTS boycott
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
Why the Su-30MKI doesn't need external fuel tanks to fly vast distances
)
Jugal Hansraj reunites with Shekhar Kapur after 40 years for Masoom: The Next Generation
)
New speed limits, automatic challans: Big traffic change coming to Delhi-Meerut Expressway. All you need to know
)
India officially names 27 places in Arunachal to counter China's renaming claims
)
Trump calls White House ballroom ruling a 'national disgrace' as court says Congress approval needed
)
US sanctions Iran’s crypto network after Strait of Hormuz attacks, offers $15m bounty for intel on IRGC finance
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
Why the Su-30MKI is one of the heaviest fighters ever built
)
Uttarakhand young innovator builds India's own flying vehicle, conducts first test flight: WATCH
)
Chilling video shows students take cover as teen opens fire at Thai school
)
Reese Witherspoon's father hospitalised after poolside incident in Nashville: Report
He further added, "I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera where it’s like, ‘Hey! Keep this thing alive, even though no one cares about this anymore.’"
“All respect to the ballet and opera people out there,” he said with a laugh. "I just lost 14 cents in viewership. I’m taking shots for no reason."
Reactions from artists
The clip from the event quickly went viral, and Marty Supreme star faced backlash from several performers and institutions connected to live performing arts.
American opera singer Isabel Leonard criticised the comment, saying, “Honestly, I’m shocked that someone so seemingly successful can be so ineloquent and narrow minded in his views about art while considering himself as artist as I would only imagine one would as an actor.”
Artist Franz Szony wrote, "Two classical art forms that have been around for hundreds of years, both of which take a massive amount of talent and discipline this man will never possess. Speaks volumes about his taste level for him to say this… also, saying ‘no disrespect’ after saying something disrespectful actually translates to ‘I disrespect art I don’t understand’."
Choreographer Martin Chaix replied to the actor's comment saying that the art is "very much alive." "If anything, in a world where AI is reshaping cinema faster than most realise, the unmediated human presence of ballet and opera becomes more essential, not less. I hope he finds his way into a theatre."
Many other artists and organisations took to social media platforms to react to the actor's comment.
Chalamet has not addressed the backlash yet.
