Source : PERTHNOW NEWS
Whoopi Goldberg and Sunny Hostin have added to the criticism being aimed at Timothée Chalamet after the actor suggested ballet and opera were art forms people “don’t care about anymore”.
The View co-hosts hit out at the Marty Supreme actor, 30, after he made the comment during a televised discussion about cinema – which have since been widely slammed by members of the arts community.
His comments were discussed during the Monday (09.03.26) episode of The View, where Whoopi, 70, and Sunny, 57, reacted to remarks Timothée made during a CNN and Variety town hall event conversation with Matthew McConaughey.
Sunny said she found the remarks insulting to performers and audiences involved in ballet and opera, adding: “Ballet is hard.”
She also said: “I’m offended and disappointed in what he said. I didn’t realise he was that vapid and that shallow.”
Whoopi also addressed the remarks during The View, referencing Timothée’s background and warning dismissing other art forms can have consequences.
She said: “You come from a dance family, so when you c*** on somebody else’s art form, it doesn’t feel good.
“You probably didn’t realise until you said, ‘Oh, I’m in trouble’… I’m just saying. Be careful, boy.
“He is a boy to me. No disrespect.”
Whoopi went on: “Really, don’t apologise when you’ve insulted. It doesn’t sound right.”
“You can’t say, ‘Oh, this is dumb, no disrespect.’ That’s absolute disrespect.”
During his discussion with Matthew, Oscar-nominated Timothée spoke about the state of movie theatres and the challenge of encouraging audiences to continue attending cinemas.
He compared the debate around cinemas to other forms of performance such as ballet and opera, which he suggested survive partly through efforts to keep them relevant.
Timothée said: “I admire when actors go on a talk show and go, ‘Hey, we gotta keep movie theaters alive. You know, we gotta keep this genre alive’.
“And another part of me feels like, if people wanna see it, like Barbie, like Oppenheimer, they’re gonna go see it and go out of their way and be loud and proud about it.”
Timothée added: “And I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera, or things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive’.
“Even though it’s like, no one cares about this anymore.”
Timothée added: “All respect to the ballet and opera people out there. I just lost 14 cents in viewership.”
Timothée’s comments have already prompted responses from several opera organisations.
The Royal Ballet and Opera shared a video on Instagram highlighting performers and backstage staff working at the Royal Opera House.
The Royal Ballet and Opera wrote: “Every night at the Royal Opera House, thousands of people gather for ballet and opera. For the music. For the storytelling. For the sheer magic of live performance.”
The organisation added: “If you’d like to reconsider, Timothée Chalamet, our doors are open.”
The English National Opera also invited Timothée to attend a performance, while the Seattle Opera promoted a discount on tickets for its production of Carmen, offering 14 percent off using the code “Timothée”.
