Jamie Lee Curtis Says She's 'Sure' Timothée Chalamet 'Regrets' His 'Silly' Opera and Ballet Comments
Jamie Lee Curtis Says She's 'Sure' Timothée Chalamet 'Regrets' His 'Silly' Opera and Ballet Comments
Yamillah HurtadoWed, March 11, 2026 at 9:16 PM UTC
0
Jamie Lee Curtis; Timothée ChalametCredit: Maya Dehlin Spach/Getty; Dominic Lipinski/Getty -
Jamie Lee Curtis voiced her opinion on Timothée Chalamet’s viral opera and ballet comments
“I’m sure he regrets the comment because you can’t throw those art forms under a bus,” the Oscar-winning actress told The Hollywood Reporter
Chalamet’s claim that “no one cares” about ballet and opera sparked backlash, with several celebrities and institutions reacting to his comments
Jamie Lee Curtis is one of many celebrities voicing her thoughts on Timothée Chalamet’s comment that “no one cares” about ballet and opera.
The Oscar-winning actress, whose eldest daughter Annie is a dance instructor, spoke about Chalamet’s controversial comments in a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
“His comments are silly, and I’m sorry that they’re going to be a bit of his legacy now,” Curtis, 67, said. “I’m sure he regrets the comment because you can’t throw those art forms under a bus. You can’t do it. They’re too important.”
She continued, “Does that mean there’s not a reduction in audiences for those art forms? I’m sure there is. Does that mean it’s going to be the destruction of those art forms? No.”
“People still shoot on film, by the way,” Curtis added.
Timothée ChalametCredit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
— sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Chalamet, 30, has received backlash over his viral comments from a Variety and CNN town hall with his Interstellar costar Matthew McConaughey on Feb. 24.
"I don't want to be working in ballet, or opera, or things where it's like, 'Hey, keep this thing alive, even though, like, no one cares about this anymore.' All respect to all the ballet and opera people out there," Chalamet said.
Advertisement
After realizing his comment may be deemed offensive, Chalamet joked, "I just lost 14 cents in viewership. I just took shots for no reason."
The Marty Supreme actor’s comments came while discussing the recent resurgence of moviegoing, as well as his desire to preserve the film industry and keep movie theaters alive, an idea that isn’t foreign to Curtis.
Matthew McConaughey and Timothee ChalametCredit: Variety/Youtube
As an actress whose career spans decades and a producer, Curtis told The Hollywood Reporter that she has anxiety over the future of film.
“I see the lists of actors who are available for work, and when you start going down these lists, these are people who have starred in movies, had their own TV series — and they’re willing to go on tape for a small part in either your movie or your TV show,” she explained. “It is a desperate time. There is very little work available.”
Despite this, Curtis is hopeful, adding, “I believe that the industry will survive — I think we’re in more of a transition phase.”
“Nobody knows s--- about what makes anything successful,” Curtis noted. “You just have to trust the art form.”
Chalamet is nominated at Sunday's Oscars in the Best Actor category for his performance in Marty Supreme.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”