Actor Timothee Chalamet has taken on some major roles in Hollywood blockbuster films such as A Complete Unknown, the Dune franchise, Wonka and more. The now 29-year-old has reflected on his acting career and the bold moves he consciously made to get ahead and make it into the big leagues. His successful career came thanks to the once aspiring actor making some "radical" decisions in his early twenties, instead of waiting around for luck. Timothee revealed to The Hollywood Reporter: "Some people are fortunate enough to stumble into their success or be passive about their pursuit of whatever they want to do in life. That wasn't it for me."
The young entertainer dedicated his life to perfecting his craft. He shared: "For me, it was putting in the 10,000 hours. It was dropping out of college. It was taking a risk. It was pursuing projects that were untraditional at first — at the time, it was kind of radical, the choices I was making when I was 20."
His latest role playing pro ping-pong player Marty in the movie Marty Supreme, was a role that deeply touched him because he saw his younger self in the character — ambitious, driven and passionate. The Wonka actor expressed: "In spirit, this is the most who I was that I've had to play a role. This is who I was before I had a career. In a sense, the story of Marty Mauser is really comparative. And so I was deeply moved by it."
When the performer accepted his SAG Award for Best Actor in the movie A Complete Unknown in February 2025, he revealed onstage: "I'm really in pursuit of greatness. I know people don't talk like that, but I want to be one of the greats. I'm inspired by the greats. I'm inspired by the greats here tonight." He added that his inspiration doesn't only come from fellow actors, but from the "greats" who are at the top of their game, across a plethora of industries. The entertainer continued: "I'm as inspired by Daniel-Day Lewis, Marlon Brando, and Viola Davis as I am by Michael Jordan, Michael Phelps and I want to be up there."
Timothee got his start in the acting world when he attended the notorious "fame" school, Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts. It was there that his passion for acting was ignited, and he found his purpose. He went on to attend Columbia University for a year and studied cultural anthropology. The actor then transferred to New York University to focus on acting at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study.
In the meantime, he landed a role in the movie Interstellar and took the major risk to drop out and pursue acting full time, which in retrospect made his career what it is today. Timothee listened to his intuition, forged his own path, and had the talent to back it up. We're certain that being "one of the greats" will become his legacy.