Timothee Chalamet has finally admitted to having an alias as a “British rapper.”
For a while now, his fans knew he was also posting rap videos as someone called “Esdee Kid.”
I’m all for a little fun, but “Timmy” is wrecking his chances at getting an Oscar for his excellent work in “Marty Supreme.”
Chalamet doesn’t seem to take advice from anyone. He’s almost 30, and he’s just doing his thing, not thinking about the rest of his cast, the studio, or the bigger picture of what it means to carry a movie.
The last few weeks have also been taken up by orange ping pong balls, grossly expensive merch like $250 cloth jackets, and so on.
What’s happened in the interim is that he’s slipped from number 1 on most Oscar prognostication lists to number 4 or 5. Ahead of him now are Leonardo DiCaprio, Ethan Hawke, Michael B. Jordan, and Joel Edgerton.
While Timmy is running around in orange leather suits with is scantily clad girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, the other potential nominees for Best Actor are conducting themselves like adults.
Frankly, this reminds me of when James Franco was on the cusp of success and started making very bad choices. The Academy could see he wasn’t serious. The rest of his story is history.
Even Adam Sandler, who loves wearing basketball uniforms and kidding around, is acting pretty sober. He knows he has a shot for Best Supporting Actor in “Jay Kelly.” (It’s a tight category, with Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Delroy Lindo, and Andrew Scott all high on lists.)
Marketing is always welcome for movies if there’s a point to it. What’s going on now is young people, vibing to the rapping and the clothes, only to discover that “Marty Supreme” isn’t a music video but a serious film directed by Josh Safdie, who’s made a great movie. Chalamet is mocking his own film, although he doesn’t realize it.
No one is willing to say this lest they be thrown out of his circle. But I’m twice his age. I’ve known Chalamet since he’s 18. He’s on track for a big career. But he’s self detonating before our very eyes.
