Don’t worry, Chalamaniacs, Timmy will be fine!
Wednesday, March 18, 2026 at 4:00PM 
First look at Timothée Chalamet in DUNE: PART THREE | © Warner Bros.
The period between the Oscar nominations announcement and the actual 98th Academy Awards ceremony hasn’t been easy for Timothée Chalamet’s most ardent fans. From presumed Best Actor frontrunner, he became an also-ran. Honestly, considering what we saw of the final results, he may not have been the second-placer either. Anyway, more than losing the prize, he was the butt of half a dozen jokes throughout the ceremony, with the winning team from Two Strangers Exchanging Saliva going as far as alluding to the opera and ballet comments that set social media and the world of performing arts aflame in the week after Oscar voting closed. However, the situation can and has been a tad overblown.
So, as the title suggests, I’m here to ask Chalamaniacs not to worry, not to panic, calm down. Timmy will be just fine…
First of all, there was no smear campaign costing the Marty Supreme star the Oscar gold many had predicted for him a couple of months ago. Indeed, attempts to bring up some of his diva antics on the Wonka set or his stealth support for Shia LaBeouf got little to no traction. What has hurt his public image, or at least the media reaction to Chalamet, were the words coming from his own mouth. To be fair, there’s nothing wrong with wanting to be a mainstream entertainer for mainstream audiences, nor wanting to go about this business of being a celebrity by emulating rock stars and star athletes rather than the most respected thespians in the film industry. Similarly, nothing wrong with striving for excellence.
However, Chalamet doesn’t always express these ideas with the most eloquence, often coming off as dismissive or cocky in a way one would sooner associate with a frat bro than an artist who first got critics’ attention in the film festival circuit. I'll be honest, I think opera and ballet professionals have the right to be mad. His goofy hijinks while promoting Marty Supreme, his unwillingness to rub elbows with the film industry at events like the Governors Awards, and other factors further helped turn a lot of the media against him. His peers, too. Or, at least, his peers who vote for the Oscars and, sadly, still uphold a lot of the biases and snobbishness that always define the season and infuriate those of us who follow along. It’s not fair. It’s also not new. And certainly not exclusive to Chalamet.
If you’re an actressexual who’s been reading The Film Experience since the mid-00s, you might remember similar falls from grace directed at many a female star. Nicole Kidman has endured backlash after backlash, followed by awed rediscoveries whenever the world is ready to recognize her worth again. Anne Hathaway suffered much nastier pushback than Chalamet for wanting the Oscar too much. And, of course, she did win, but still spent a period away from the limelight because “everyone” was annoyed with her. These examples are meant to give you a sense of security that none of this is eternal and that the actor you love is on his way to bounce back from all this. Hell, for someone who wants to keep moviegoing alive, headline blockbusters and whatnot, 2026 is looking great.
Because, in December, Dune: Part Three is upon us, blocking Doomsday from IMAX theaters and already counting on a baked-in, committed audience that will follow Chalamet’s Paul Atreides into the ends of the world. The first posters were shared right after the Oscar ceremony, and the trailer premiered yesterday to great hype. Between that and the announced Wonka sequel, this three-time Best Actor Academy Award nominee is bound to continue his reign over the box office. Maybe he won’t be back on the race for gold in the next couple of years, but it seems fairly evident that he’ll be back. And, by that time, all of this will be but a faint memory of awards seasons past and the madness they entail.
Also, by the looks of it, the present mess seems to have shaken off Chalamet’s much-publicized would-be stalker, so maybe he’s a winner after all. There’s no greater gift than being freed from Miss Club’s attention. Let’s be happy for that.
What do you think of the Dune: Part Three trailer? Are you excited for Timothée Chalamet’s third go at portraying Frank Herbert’s messianic anti-hero?
Reader Comments (11)
Cláudio: Who do you think will win an Oscar first?
Timothée Chalamet or Diane Warren?
Claudio I don't really remember Kidman backlash and i've been coming here since 2001.
She was criticized for choosing bad Hollywood remakes like Bewitched and The Stepford Wives which is actually a camp classic in my house and not using her gifts but they forgot Birth and Margot At the Wedding cos they were indies.
She was then turned on for various alleged cosmetic enhancements specifically her immobile forehead and inflated lips around the time of Australia and the internet is still internetting about it in 2026 but now it's mostly about her earlobes and lack of expressiveness in the Scarpetta trailer.
Then her ubiquity around the times of Big Little Lies 2017 - 2021 and spreading herself thinly and people getting sick of her.
Is that backlash or people just putting forward genuine critiques,I don't know.
I myself haven't been wowed or impressed by her for the longest time,i've found she's been good in some things Babygirl but hardly at her peak and bland in others,last time I nominated her for my own awards was way back in 2012 for The Paperboy.
DAVID S -- Chalamet. I don't think Warren will ever win a competitive Oscar.
Mr Ripley79 -- Going after her appearance and cosmetic procedures is not a genuine or fair critique. As it wouldn't be for anyone else, no matter how much everyone loves to snidely comment on people's bodies and faces and whatnot, especially women's. She has received backlash, as have many other actresses over the years, which has been commented upon on this site over the years, too, mostly by Nathaniel. In any case, if everything you say about Kidman and the way she's been talked about isn't backlash, then the same goes for Chalamet. And like her, he'll be fine and the point of this little write-up stands.
I think not winning the Oscar this year will really help Timmy's public image and career in the long run. Not that I think winning would have ruined him or anything, but winning after so many people have criticized you for your entitlement and lack of humility while campaigning would only have created a bigger backlash, especially since SAG presented the clear possibility of MBJ winning instead. The jabs taken at him during the ceremony along with his film going home empty-handed felt like a pointed attempt to humble him. Whether his public demeanor changes or not, we'll see, but it's much better for him to build his career to the point where people actually do think he's overdue to win an Oscar rather than having won after essentially self-proclaiming himself to be overdue at age 30.
Edwin -- That's a great point! Losing might be better for his career in the long term, when all's said and done. We just have to wait and see.
@Claudio - I think a lot of it is just typical mean girls stuff and really it's her business,there could be plenty of the male stars who have help who are never given the same treatment as the ladies,
I love Nicole always have since the Bangkok Hilton/Dead Calm/Cruise's wife breakout to the To DieFor/Portrait of a Lady revelations to the major movie star 2001 - 2004 acclaim then the wilderness years 2005 - 2010 the Rabbit Hole/Paperboy mojo return right up to the point of Boy Erased/Destroyer/Being the Ricardos all of which I was unimpressed esp the altter film but and I am hoping she's going to give a performance that'll make me fall in love with her all over again.
Because she appears in so much stuff I think she's taken for granted,so when she does knock it out of the park a la Babygirl it means and resonates more with her fans.
I too think Timothee will bounce back with the new Dune but something tells me he'll disappear for a while a la Jennifer Lawrence/Michael Fassbender style for fear of being overexposed.
Look, a lot of Chalamet's issues come from how he talks. Sometimes he seems all over the place, like, dude, just chill with the ego. Yeah, the Oscars can be rough, but it's not the end. He'll bounce back, just watch.
I’m trying to understand why it is ok for the Dune movies to continue to be nominated but no one wanted the second Wicked to be nominated… is it because years go by in between movies? I mean the LOTR movies were nominated three years straight and that was ok. Is it because Wicked was one musical and they split into two movies?
Tony L
It's because the LOTR films are great fantasy film-making, Dune is well-made blockbuster work and Wicked is horrendous.
Rather watch Ariana sing than Timothee trying to act tough
Rather watch Ariana sing than Timothee trying to act tough