Tom Cruise offers a “war cry” to Timothée Chalamet
Tom Cruise wants Timothée Chalamet to train up as a leading man like they used to do in Old Hollywood
Aux News Timothée Chalamet
A detailed section of Timothée Chalamet’s new GQ profile is dedicated to praising his peers like Zendaya, Tom Holland, Austin Butler, and Florence Pugh (“I feel like I’m creating a community for myself of people who care about the right things”). Then there’s the older artists he’s been lucky to work with, like Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio (“That was the day Jennifer [Lawrence] said was the most annoying day of her life, working with me and Leo. I exploded out of my room”). Then there’s the mentors he hasn’t yet worked with, who have nevertheless taken an interest in his career. Enter cinema’s own Tom Cruise.
“After I met Tom Cruise, right after finishing the first Dune, he sent me the most wonderfully inspiring email,” Chalamet told GQ, adding that Cruise included a list of experts who could help him with stunt training. “He basically said, in Old Hollywood, you would be getting dance training and fight training, and nobody is going to hold you to that standard today. So it’s up to you. The email was really like a war cry.”
As it happens, Chalamet did get some dance training for his big movie musical Wonka. Tony-winning choreographer Christopher Gattelli sang the star’s praises for his dedication to learning tap, noting that his mother and grandmother are trained Broadway dancers. “He would joke about it—like ‘It’s in my blood!’ And I was like: It is. It literally is,” Gattelli said.
The process was “a throwback to LaGuardia,” the performing arts high school Chalamet attended in New York. “We’re telling a story here. This isn’t, like, athletic naturalism,” Chalamet explained. “It’s a shot of earnestness and sincerity, without the cynicism or dread or all the stuff we’re exhausted by.”
Tom Cruise would be proud—and surely very pleased, because on top of Chalamet’s training in the craft, he’s also a huge Top Gun: Maverick fan. “Top Gun was just hugely inspiring to me last summer when we were making Dune,” he gushed to the outlet. He saw the film eight times, one of which he rented a theater and brought the whole Dune team. “Some of the crew were kind of scoffing at going, but I just thought it was one of the greatest films I’ve ever seen.”
37 Comments
We talk about Tom Cruise being ‘The Last Movie Star’ but I really think Timothée Chalamet could be seen as a modern one. He’s charismatic, has a particular aesthetic, has widespread appeal (apart from to heterosexual men 35+), and he’s pretty much always himself in everything he plays. That seems like all the requirements to me.
plus deep down he just seems like an enthusiastic dork, which goes a long way with me.
I’m a 35+ straight male and have quickly become a fan of his work. I was really skeptical of his casting in Dune but he nailed it. So I’m looking forward to his Wonka. He also comes off as a stand-up person.
If my life has shown me anything, it has shown me that I have absolutely no idea how cis-het men think.Totally agree with you on your points though, despite your degenerate sexuality. With Dune, he really captured Paul’s earnestness, the sense that he’s been extensively trained in every aspect of becoming the next duke, and the feeling that he’s bristling to have some sort of existence beyond the feudal machinations he was born into.
Well, I dig chicks, think Chalamet is a charismatic and talented actor but am not sexually attracted to him and…yeah. That’s about it. I try not to think too much.ETA: The fight scene near the end definitely proved that he wasn’t just some coddled prince, he’d actually absorbed the training he got for Duncan and Gurney.
35+ straight man here, and yeah, he seems fun. Have really enjoyed his more comic stuff – he was great in the French Dispatch. The next in a rich lineage of impossibly good-looking people who are also willing to take the piss out of impossibly good-looking people (Mr Gosling and Mr Pitt being the two most recent bearers of that particular crown)
I personally think the Coens saved George Clooney’s career by having him goof on his all-world leading man looks. His film career had not been terribly promising to that point, Out of Sight the exception. Having a sense of humor about yourself goes a long way. I also think of Justin Timberlake and his Lonely Island videos, taking shots at his own boy-band past. Completely changed a lot of people’s perspective on him.
the perfect storm was ack-chu-ally the one that did it, was a massive hit, but obviously the coens elevated him even further.
We talk about Tom Cruise being ‘The Last Movie Star’
People say that about a lot of things but unless it’s literally impossible for there to be another whatever, it’s not the case. There are going to be plenty of movie stars on that level in the future.
People say that in the sense that Movie Stars used to sell tickets. Now it is overwhelminlgy IP or internet hype that sells tickets. I think its slightly overblown but the shift is undeniable.
35+ hetero dude here, and honestly, at this point I think the only reason I haven’t gotten on the Chalamet train is because I just still have not gotten over how fucking annoying his character was on Homeland. Unfair to hold the writing of a show that was already going off the rails against him, I know, but here we are.
Hey now, I totally forgot his part in Homeland, but that show had one hell of a finish. One of the most complete and satisfactory endings in recent memory.
I admit I bailed in, I think… season three, maybe? My wife continued on but I just couldn’t do it. I don’t doubt you that it stuck the landing, but that always felt like a show that should have been one and done, with Damien Lewis’s character going through with his kamikaze plan as a super dark ending (just IMO). It just never felt like a concept that should have been stretched out for as long as it was.
The process was “a throwback to LaGuardia,” the performing arts high school Chalamet attended in New York.
That’s a helpful aside. Otherwise one might think he was nostalgic for the airport. Or the 1930s/1940s mayor who was convinced pinball machines were one of NYC’s biggest problems and got them banned from the city for decades.
“Then there’s the mentors”
Then there are the mentors. Come on, AIBot, you should at least have a grasp of proper grammar.
“Tom Cruise would be proud”
Is Tom Cruise dead? Seems like that would be a big headline.
I expect in a few days to hear Chalamet discuss his tremendous power to control destiny, how he admires L. Ron Hubbard, that it’s OK to always be seen sleeping over at Cruise’s house and how “Leah Remini is ‘entitled to her opinions’ even though Shelly Miscavige is fine – just fine.”
Ha, yeah he should probably thank Cruise for his good advice over email and then keep clear.
*sigh* I see what you did there.
Completely inadvertent but I’ll go ahead and take credit. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good.
I did think it was weird when Chalamet started screaming about how much he loves Katie Holmes.
“ALL GLORY TO THE HYPNO-CRUISE!”
“He basically said, in Old Hollywood, you would be getting dance training and fight training, and nobody is going to hold you to that standard today.”So when will we see Tom Cruise lead a movie with lots of dancing?
There was that one ending credit…
It’s a start, but…show us more, Tom Cruise.Stop leaping off motorcycle in the middle of canyon jumps, and start leaping off tables to tap-dance more….
Rock of Ages?(I did see it, but I genuinely don’t remember how much dancing was actually involved… or much of anything else about it.)
It’s not a lot, but it’s just about the only thing most people remember about the movie (also the Porsche, which I believe has lead to some discomfort at at least one Porsche-affiliated event when someone thought Risky Business was an appropriate movie to show).
I’ve been rooting for Timothée to become a star since my teenage gay crush on him during Homeland season 2. Took a little longer than I’d hoped, but glad it’s happening!
Echoing what’s been said of “Beware of Sign-in-tology and the big star beckoning you in”!
Isn’t it a bit late to *start* leading man training when you’re pushing 30 and already an established major movie star?
Tom is grooming Timmy for when it comes time to implant his brain into Timmy’s younger body. Hail, Xenu for granting your servant a vessel of flesh for eternal life!
I suspect they already have a new Tom-suit waiting in his private laboratory. Maybe Tom has other plans for the lad.
When you’re that pretty, Hollywood execs start inviting you over for “private readings” at their Sonoran Desert retreat.
You know, President Zod, I think you’re right.Sneaky…!
“Great movie, Timmy! Can’t wait to see part 2! Here’s a list of fight/dance coordinators, so you can make your stunts look more realistic!……by the way have you heard the gospel of our lord and savior Xenu”
um…ok…
Tom Cruise wants to recruit Timothee into Scientology. End of story.