Missing out on an Academy Award is a significant setback that can deeply impact any performer, and Timothée Chalamet faced that reality on Sunday, March 15.
The Marty Supreme lead was up for the Best Actor prize for his role as a table tennis prodigy, but the accolade went to Michael B. Jordan for Sinners.
Though the Oscar camera operators captured Chalamet cheering on his fellow nominee following his victory, a source says he felt wounded — especially as his loss came on the heels of him being mocked for his opera and ballet remarks.
Moreover, people reportedly stopped talking to Chalamet following his defeat, according to the source.
Insiders revealed details about what went down with Timothée Chalamet following his Oscars loss
Chalamet triggered intense backlash from performing arts fans after he said in a late-February chat with Matthew McConaughey, “I don’t want to be working in ballet, or opera, or things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive,’ even though no one cares about this anymore.”
The actor’s statement was called “tone-deaf” by netizens, who denounced him for disrespecting an art form while he himself works in one.
Oscar’s host, Conan O’Brien, poked fun at the controversy in his monologue, saying, “Security is extremely tight tonight. I’ve just got to mention that. I’m told there are concerns about attacks from both the opera and ballet communities.”
A Daily Mail source described the Oscars as “a weird room to be in” for Chalamet amid the joke, and the situation only became worse when excitement around him fizzled out after his Best Actor defeat.
“During commercials, he was going up to people to talk, and people were coming to him — everyone was taking pictures,” the source said.
But people stopped approaching him once Jordan was handed his gold statuette, “because what do you end up talking about” with someone who lost?
Chalamet, according to a second source, was consoled by his girlfriend Kylie Jenner’s mother, Kris, at the Vanity Fair Oscars party.
“I’m sure she put the loss in perspective, which is what she does. She chills people out,” the insider said. “I’m sure she told him he is super young and will get his Oscar later.”
While Kris reportedly tried to uplift Chalamet, a third source said Kylie’s ex, Travis Scott, scratched the wound again with a social media shoutout to Jordan.
Scott, who is the father of Kylie’s two children, Stormi and Aire, shared a photo of Jordan crying as he accepted his Oscar.
“That definitely felt like a jab at Timothée,” the insider said. “Some saw this as Travis’ way of sending a message about who he thinks is cool and who isn’t.”
The insider, however, added that the men are cordial enough in real life because “Travis has to keep the peace with anyone who is in his kids’ lives.”
In the wake of his Oscar loss, Chalamet is relieved that it is over
The actor spent seven years learning table tennis for his role in Marty Supreme, which is loosely based on the life of the champion of the sport, Marty Reisman.
When it came to promotions, Chalamet visibly put in effort, wearing orange outfits for months to match the color of ping-pong balls and accessorizing with designer bags shaped like paddles.
“He would have loved” to be recognized as best actor by the Academy for his role, but amid his loss, he is now going to lay low, the source said.
“He doesn’t want to be seen in this controversial light, so he is hoping for ‘out of sight, out of mind.’ He is going to enjoy the next few days away from it all to decompress. He’s learning from it all right now,” they added.
When he ultimately returns to the spotlight and the big screen, “it will be a fresh start.”
Kylie Jenner, on the other hand, feels bad for Timothée Chalamet
Image credits: culturelesspop
Jenner, who was shouted out by Chalamet at the Golden Globes and Critics’ Choice Awards as he picked up Best Actor trophies, feels like “he was sabotaged” by the press for his opera and ballet comment after “he worked so hard on the film,” the insider said.
His Oscar loss, however, is “not humiliating for her at all.”
Timothée Chalamet’s defeat is expected to “test” his relationship with the reality star and beauty mogul, though, per the source.
His romantic life, which has not been “too problematic” so far, may hinge on how he handles his professional fallout.
“I’m so obsessed with them,” a fan wrote about their relationship
