Spielberg recently spoke out about Chalamet's controversial comments that "no one cares" about ballet and opera
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NEED TO KNOW
- Steven Spielberg and Timothée Chalamet were almost face-to-face on the red carpet at the 2026 Academy Awards on Sunday, March 15
- Days before, Spielberg criticized Chalamet for claiming that “no one cares” about opera and ballet
- The Marty Supreme actor has faced backlash from many figures in the entertainment industry about the comments, which he made in late February
After Steven Spielberg called Timothée Chalamet out for his controversial remarks about opera and ballet, the two nearly came face-to-face at the 2026 Oscars.
A video captured by eTalk TV showed the filmmaker, 79, and the actor, 30, come within inches of one another on the red carpet at the annual ceremony on Sunday, March 15. In the clip, Spielberg was heading into the theater with his granddaughter, Eve Gavigan, when Chalamet nearly brushed shoulders with them as he was ushered inside.
The star was nominated for Best Actor for Marty Supreme at this year’s ceremony, making him the youngest actor since Marlon Brando to receive three Best Actor nominations at the Academy Awards. The award ultimately went to Michael B. Jordan for his dual role in Sinners.
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Days prior, Spielberg addressed Chalamet’s recent comments that “no one cares” about art forms such as ballet and opera anymore.
“At the end of a really good movie experience, we are all united with a whole bunch of feelings that we walk into the daylight with, or into the nighttime with. And there’s nothing like that. It happens in movies, and in concerts,” the Jaws director said, per Variety, during a panel at the 2026 SXSW Conference and Festival on March 13.
“And it happens in ballet and opera, by the way,” he continued, garnering applause from the audience. He then added: “We want that to be sustained. We want that to go forever.”
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On Feb. 24, Chalamet joined Matthew McConaughey for a filmed Variety and CNN town hall at the University of Texas at Austin. The pair were discussing current movie trends when Chalamet specifically referenced the two areas he saw as outdated.
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"I don't want to be working in ballet or opera, or you know, things where it's like, 'Hey, keep this thing alive,' even though it's like, no one cares about this anymore,” he said before noting, “All respect to all the ballet and opera people out there.”
“I just lost 14 cents in viewership,” Chalamet then joked. “I just took shots for no reason."
Following the discussion, many members of the entertainment industry publicly objected to Chalamet’s comments, including ballet stars Misty Copeland and Tiler Peck; opera singers Andrea Bocelli and Isabel Leonard; and the Metropolitan Opera itself. Whoopi Goldberg, Nathan Lane, Karla Sofía Gascón, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Jamie Lee Curtis, Charlie Puth and more have also weighed in.
There was no shortage of jokes about the controversy at the 2026 Academy Awards. PEOPLE confirmed that Chalamet even gave a standing ovation after a star-studded performance featuring Copeland, which celebrated the most nominated movie in Oscars history, Sinners.
See PEOPLE's coverage of the 98th Academy Awards, airing live on ABC and Hulu on March 15.
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