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Broadway Star Lets ‘Schmuck’ Timothée Chalamet Have It After THOSE Ballet And Opera Comments
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Stage and screen actor Nathan Lane didn’t hold back when asked about Timothée Chalamet’s dismissive take on the performing arts. Appearing on “The View” Thursday to promote his imminent return to Broadway, Lane savagely weighed in on Chalamet’s assertion that “no one cares about” opera and ballet. “What a schmuck!” he proclaimed, before deeming Chalamet’s comments “kind of kaleidoscopic in [their] stupidity and insensitivity, yet strangely telling about where we are in this country.” True to form, the “Birdcage” star didn’t stop there. “First of all, one should remember people will be going to see ‘Swan Lake’ and ‘La Traviata’ long after someone at a dinner party says, ‘Who was Timothée Chalamet?’ It’s the show business circle of life,” he said. “The bigger question is: Why was there a town hall meeting with Matthew McConaughey and Timothée Chalamet? I mean, who deemed this meeting of the minds necessary? Why isn’t there a town hall meeting with Democrats discussing how to get this lunatic out of the White House?” Watch a clip of Nathan Lane’s appearance on “The View” below. Chalamet, an Academy Award nominee for his performance in “Marty Supreme,” has been at the epicenter of a weeklong media firestorm after his ballet and opera comments ― made in conversation with McConaughey at a Variety & CNN town hall last month ― went viral online. The actor’s remarks have drawn the ire of a host of performers, including ballet dancer Misty Copeland and opera singer Andrea Bocelli, as well as ballet and opera companies around the world. “Jeopardy!” notably included a “ballet and opera” category on one of its game shows this week, while Oscar winner Jamie Lee Curtis and pop singer-songwriter Charlie Puth also chimed in. Some outlets even suggested Chalamet, who many considered to be this year’s Best Actor frontrunner, may have hurt his chances of winning big at the Oscars even though voting had closed by the time the controversy broke. Much like Copeland and Leonard, Lane has personal reasons for feeling incensed. Though he’s known globally for his film and television roles, the actor is a three-time Tony winner who is returning to the stage this month in a Broadway revival of Arthur Miller’s classic play “Death of a Salesman,” co-starring Laurie Metcalf. Elsewhere in his “View” chat, Lane said Chalamet should consider the subject of “Marty Supreme” before dunking on other art forms, noting: “If you think nobody cares about opera and ballet, I can’t tell you how much we don’t care about ping-pong.” Still, he concluded by joking Chalamet should not be held fully accountable for his words based on what he believes might have happened behind the scenes with McConaughey before the interview. “I’m thinking some weed was smoked before, and this may just be a tragic case of terribly unfunny people trying to be funny,” he quipped, “which always ends in disaster.” By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
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