In late October, YouTuber Anthony Po organized the Timothee Chalamet lookalike contest in NYC. And the die of history was cast. Did Po envision the ripple effects that seminal event would have, inviting copycat lookalike contests for a who’s-who of hot Hollywood to pop up the world over? According to Po, no, he had no plans greater than merely to “make the internet fun again.” So simple were his intentions, in fact, that Po didn’t even think to secure a permit. For a gathering he hoped hundreds of people would attend. At Washington Square Park in NYC. On a Sunday. As you can tell, this particular detail continues to tickle my funny bone, yet it was no laughing matter on that fateful Sunday! Four contestants were arrested, at least one received summons, and police ordered the entire party to disperse, leading Po to shepherd all the Timothees to a “contingency plan skate park.” Proving himself to be an angel of the outing once again, the real Timothee — who infamously showed up at the event himself — apparently also offered to pay the $500 lack of permit fine on Po’s behalf. What a mensch!
Looks like Timothee Chalamet is a really good guy, according to the man who organized a look-alike contest dedicated to the “Wonka” star.
Back in October, the Oscar-nominated heartthrob delighted fans when he showed up at a contest in lower Manhattan dedicated to finding the person who most looked like him.
The event drew hundreds of onlookers besides Chalamet, which led to police ordering the crowd to disperse.
Four people were arrested at the event for being at an “unscheduled demonstration,” and organizers were also given a $500 fine for holding an “unpermitted costume contest.”
Organizer Anthony Po told People that the fine was actually a best-case scenario, since it meant authorities would need to “do something stronger” if they want to prevent further lookalike gatherings.
Po said Chalamet continued to show his support even after the event was over. He said the actor’s reps reached out to him and “offered to pay the ticket, which is truly funny.”
He said that while he appreciated Chalamet’s offer, he declined to take the money, instead allowing Partiful, a digital invite app, to pay the fine instead.
But Po was happy to hear that Chalamet enjoyed the event held in his honor, he told People. He didn’t get to meet Chalamet, but the actor was included in the contest’s final rankings — in 13th place.
“I think if he would’ve stayed for the end of it, maybe I would’ve given him runner-up or something,” Po said, noting that Chalamet currently has a mustache, and that set him apart from the other curly-haired, clean-shaven contestants.
The actual runner-up, Zander Dueve, did see Chalamet at the contest and told People, “He looked the least like himself out of everyone.”
Wow, I didn’t realize Timmy placed 13th — congrats, lol! That line about him looking “the least like himself out of everyone” is pretty hilarious. I feel like there’s a Being John Malkovich-esque film begging to be written here, and like Malkovich, I think Timmy would totally be game for collaborating. That’s something I appreciate about Timmy — he’s not a Tortured Artiste, overly precious about his craft, or derogatory towards his fame. By contrast, he wears his fame well, without coming off as fame–hungry either, and that makes it easy to like him, imo. Particularly with a fun stunt like this, he understands the assignment, as the kids like to say. Timmy-as-Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown comes out on Christmas Day. Timmy hasn’t been promoting it too hard, yet, but I almost think he doesn’t need to? I would never, ever underestimate the legions of Bob Dylan fans who will be eager to see this.
As for Anthony Po, this line absolutely cracked me up: “He said that while he appreciated Chalamet’s offer, he declined to take the money, instead allowing Partiful, a digital invite app, to pay the fine instead.” Gotta love Gen Z!
I was behind the Timothee Chalamet lookalike competition. Thanks my #1 fan (timothee) for showing up. pic.twitter.com/ZfYkOBuTNB
— Anthony Po (@anthpo) October 27, 2024
witnessed history at the timothée chalamet lookalike contest pic.twitter.com/dYWqpH5zCi
— jules (@JD_NYC1998) October 27, 2024
The winner of the Timothee Chalamet lookalike competition is a 21 year old college student from Staten Island who says he is going to spend his 50 dollar prize on candy pic.twitter.com/o9waKaafz2
— Ej Dickson (@ejdickson) October 27, 2024
Photos credit: Backgrid