Written by Joyelle “Simp” Ronan
It’s been a month since Timothee Chalamet’s GQ article dropped, and it has taken up permanent residence in my mind, rent-free. The Making (and Remaking) of Timothée Chalamet is an intimate conversation between 24 year-old Chalamet and interviewer Daniel Riley. While I can’t relate to being a movie star or getting to wear a gorgeous $1,400 Gucci sweater, I do understand what it’s like to be a young person going through a weird moment in history. While Timothee may be in the public eye, we are all living our own coming-of-age stories.
Timothee talks about the importance of giving himself space to mess up. As college students, we often feel the need to always be perfect. Is our GPA high enough? Is our resume competitive? Yes, those things are importance to some extent, but so is taking time to be genuinely happy. Enjoy watching television or exploring nature without feeling like you need to know your next step in life. For Timothee, this meant sleeping, reading and listening to albums the entire way through- all things that college students would also benefit from.
Taking a break from social media also helped Timothee slow down after his thrust into the spotlight. Our generation spends so much time consumed in social media. While social media can help us feel connected to the world, it can also make us insecure and lonely. Taking a step away from Instagram and Twitter allows for a much-needed detox. Timothee details how less than flattering photos of he and his former girlfriend, Lily-Rose Depp, making out on a boat were posted online. While he and Lily had no say in their photos being posted, we do. Special moments can exist without needing to be captured and posted.
A much more favorable photo of Timothee was released in June- it featured him, masked, marching in protest of the murder of George Floyd. In the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, he felt he needed to do something whether that was being a body in a protest or recording an inspiring message for his 10.4 million Instagram followers. While we may not have the type of platform, that doesn’t mean that we should be silent. We all have a duty to help make the world a better place. Even if we feel like our contributions are insignificant, our voices matter, especially when we use them collectively.
There are many life lessons to take away from Timothee Chalamet. If he is one of the prominent celebrity voices of our generation, then I think that bodes well for us. This is the first year since 2017 that Timothee hasn’t released a new movie; two of his upcoming films, Dune and The French Dispatch, have been pushed back. So, if nothing else, at least we have that to look forward to in 2021. To read more about the insightful Chalamet, check out the full article: https://www.gq.com/story/timothee-chalamet-november-2020-cover-profile
