There are many aspects and traits that make me who I am, and one is that I am utterly obsessed with Timothée Chalamet. He is an actor known for his roles in Call Me by Your Name and Ladybird. Though he’s not commonly recognized, I believe he can be compared to big names such as Leonardo DiCaprio and Ryan Gosling. Though I don’t know him personally, he is one of my favorite humans.
My first time seeing Chalamet in a movie was when I was on a plane coming back from Florida during my senior-year spring break. I decided to watch Call Me by Your Name, as I had heard great things about it. At the time, I was not familiar with the actors in it, but nonetheless I was excited to watch. From the time the movie started all the way to the end, I was in shock of the beauty encompassed in the film. From the dialogue to the scenery, every aspect of the movie is beyond unique. The nostalgia I felt the first time watching it is something I’ll never forget; when the movie ended, I was left speechless. Timothée had absolutely blown me away and I needed to see more of his work. I remember my whole family was sleeping so I couldn’t talk about it with anyone, nor did I have service to text any of my friends. I was left with writing notes down on my phone about my feelings.
When I got home, I immediately searched for the movie online, but could only find it on iTunes. I bought it, of course, so I could watch it whenever I wanted. I went through a phase where I told all my friends to watch it and they got very annoyed by my persistence. Even today when I meet someone new, I still try to convince them to watch the film.
After watching Call Me by Your Name as many times as I could in the span of one month, I figured I should watch other movies featuring Timothée. I watched Ladybird, Hot Summer Nights and Miss Stevens. I was infatuated with how he poured out emotions on screen through his character; his ability astonished me and gave me a great appreciation for actors and actresses.
In the fall of 2018, a movie called Beautiful Boy came out. Based on a true story, Chalamet portrayed Nic Sheff, a drug addict. I went to a showing of this film at the Landmark Theater in Uptown. Before even watching the movie, the marquee immediately caught my eye, as it read, “Timothaaay Chalamaaay is Beautiful Boy”. I posted a picture of it on Instagram and the next morning I woke up to a flood of comments and likes saying that Timothée posted it on his story. I was obviously in shock, and I immediately called my friends. They knew how much I loved him, so they were freaking out for me. Though this was super exciting, little did I know that the best interaction was yet to come. Later that week, the Landmark Theater posted that Timothée had been lured by the marquee and was coming to the theater to do a Q&A after a showing of Beautiful Boy. I remember seeing this post and literally screaming. My roommate and I bought front row tickets instantly.
After a seemingly never-ending week, the day came when I would be seeing Timothée Chalamet in person. I remember choosing my outfit very carefully in case I got to personally meet him and take a picture. The whole ride to the city was overwhelming and my nerves were through the roof. I couldn’t believe that my favorite person was in Minnesota, all because he had seen my picture.
Throughout the whole movie, I was shaking and not really paying any attention to what was on screen. After it was finished, two chairs were brought out and set literally five feet in front of me. I remember looking at my two friends and not being able to control my smile. I was already starstruck and he wasn’t even in front of me yet. After an agonizing 15 minutes, I heard the announcer say, “Now welcome the Academy Award Nominee Timothée Chalamet!” Everyone stood up, and as he came around the corner I was in disbelief. He was even more attractive in person! He was accompanied by Nic Sheff, the subject of the film. The audience was allowed to ask them questions, and I knew that if I were going to do anything that day, I would be asking Timothée freaking Chalamet a question. Many other people went before me, so my original question got taken. I was panicking that I wouldn’t get to ask him one, but eventually, I got chosen and I asked him which scene was the hardest to film. As soon as he answered it, I realized he was talking to me and I couldn’t take my eyes off him. I was in awe and nothing could have made me happier.
After the Q&A, everyone surrounded him outside and was trying to get pictures. At one point, I tapped him on the shoulder and asked, but there were so many people shoving their phones in his face I never got one. I didn’t want to be bothersome, so I decided to back away because I assumed he was very overwhelmed. Though I didn’t get to document the moment I met him, actually getting to talk to him and ask him a question was more exciting than a picture!
I have never been someone to obsess over a celebrity or someone famous, but for some reason with Timothée, I feel different. All the interviews I’ve watched of him show that he’s genuinely a kind-hearted, down-to-earth person and that means a lot coming from someone who could very well have a large ego and get away with it. I would’ve never guessed that day on the plane watching Call Me by Your Name that my love for him would’ve grown this big!