Meeting Timothée Chalamet in a Post Covid-19 World

This article originally appeared at Club Chalamet on April 18, 2020, it has since been updated for ToZ.

Timothée at The King premiere in New York City, October 2, 2019 | Getty Images/Netflix

Covid-19 Will Change How Fans Interact (or not) with Celebrities

I've been thinking about how the coronavirus has disrupted my personal and professional life tremendously. Like for everyone who reads this, all our lives came to a halt and we had to stay at home per orders of government and health officials so that we can save lives and prevent hospitals from being completely overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients. So many people have died who otherwise might still be alive today had they not become infected by this new virus. It's serious and it's real and literally, every human being on this planet has had to adjust quickly to this harsh new, temporary, reality that we find ourselves in. For the lucky ones, we still have our jobs and can work from home safely with job security and peace of mind, but so many are not lucky as they lost their jobs, and students from kindergarten through college now have to complete their studies at home through online learning. Events that many of us have long been looking forward to participating and attending have been canceled or postponed, and travel arrangements put into flux, and often with no refunds, but instead, a credit towards future travel, whenever that will be.

Now that it has been a full month of living in a COVID-19 world, I'm giving pause to think about how this has affected the life and work of our favorite actor. In a normal world, Timothée would be two weeks into his six-week run at the Old Vic in London for his sold-out 4000 Miles play. I had tickets for May 2, and when it was announced that it was postponed, Timmy flew home to New York in mid-March where he has been on lockdown ever since. He's safe and near family and I'm happy about that. But now we wait to see when 4k Miles will be rescheduled sometime in 2021. Earlier this week I started to think about his upcoming production 'Going Electric' the Bob Dylan biopic that we're excited to see him start. I started thinking about how film production would be drastically changed due to the virus, and until a vaccine is discovered, tremendous care will need to be implemented to have safe working conditions for all involved in making a film.

As this informative article from Deadline Hollywood Reopening Hollywood reveals, the industry is already discussing the significant changes that need to be implemented moving forward, with hopes that filming can resume in August/September. Here are some highlights to frame the larger question of this topic:

Getting up and running again in this brave new world is going to be very difficult to navigate. For one thing, insurers are unlikely to cover productions for COVID-19 cases when business resumes, according to multiple sources in the know. Producers all over filed multimillion-dollar claims triggered when civil authorities — governments — prevented filming from continuing and forcing production shutdowns. When the business starts up, that will now be considered an identified risk, and insurers will not cover it, sources said, just as CDC is warning of a second coronavirus wave.

There will be no ideal way to ensure a completely safe set, but this is what might happen right away. Everyone will be tested before they are allowed onto a set. While not as accurate as traditional swab tests that take days to process, rapid antigen tests are the best possible option as they provide results within 15-20 minutes.

And important to note:

There will be an extra level of protection built around actors whose health is crucial to keeping production going and a crew employed. They are irreplaceable and, because of the nature of their work, actors cannot be in front of the camera wearing protective equipment. To keep them safe, below the line personnel coming into contact with actors or directors will have to wear masks and gloves at all times.

This last quote is what we all need to understand. When Timmy resumes working on set and does promotional work for The French Dispatch and Dune, and then starts 4k Miles, his interactions with fans will be non-existent! For his HEALTH and safety, he has to practice social distancing from fans and everyone else, except for those who he has to work very closely with, and even they have to pass regular health checks for everyone's safety. When 4000 Miles is rescheduled sometime next year (or even in 2022), the vaccine still won't be available, so there will be NO stage door. Also, remember Timmy's co-star is a theater legend in her mid-80s! And when premieres for Dispatch and Dune occur later this year, fans congregating will be far removed from the talent walking the red carpet. Their screams and signs will be a nice welcome for the talent, sort of like cheerleaders, but no autographs, no selfies, no hugs. You don't need a crystal ball to see this.

Timmy at TIFF for Beautiful Boy Sept 2018| Photo Simone C

So if you're one of the few lucky ones that have met Timmy, got his autograph, got a selfie, a hug, or kissed him/got kissed by him, shook his hand... treasure those memories because it will be a very long time before any fan will have the opportunity to get close to him like that again. Even me writing that last sentence gave me pause and made me realize just how serious this virus is and until there is a vaccine that the whole world has been inoculated against, we cannot risk hugging or getting intimately close with someone we do not know of their health status and immunity to COVID-19. I have been so honored to have met Timmy several times, shook his hand, hugged him, got his autograph, got a couple of selfies, but I realize that it will be quite a while before I will even get to shake his hand again. And that's a very sobering thought.

The thing about being a fan of Timothée Chalamet is that he truly LOVES to engage with his fans, he thrives on the energy we give him and he just appreciates our support, and that speaks highly of him, and we love him for that. I'm sure by now he has been informed of the upcoming changes to how actors of his caliber will be managed on set, and how new security protocols will be established to protect his health and safety from fans, paparazzi, and red carpet interactions and interviews at film premieres and film festivals. Just as he was leaving London, he had a bodyguard with him. This will be the new normal at least for the next 2 years. Yes, two whole years!! It's going to take 6-15 months for a vaccine, then there are test trials, and then the vaccine will be given out to health professionals, the vulnerable, VIPs, and then the rest of us. If you're a Timmy fan reading this and you have yet to have an up-close moment with him, I'm sorry to say, that's going to have to wait quite a while. This bums me out and I know this bums Timmy out too. But just imagine, if you are now working from home, or doing your schoolwork from home, and you can't go to your local park without having on a face mask, or go to the grocery with a mask and gloves on, you then will come to completely understand why you will not be able to meet Timothée Chalamet any time soon.

Some of the images used in this article are red carpet moments at film premieres Timmy has attended, and he spent a great deal of time interacting with fans. From a May 7th article featured in The Hollywood Reporter, the red carpet will look very different the next time Timmy walks on it. No entourages, plastic shields, and individual interview pods - the new red carpet of the 21st century has been forced upon us by a virus that will change how we all socially engage with each other in this new decade:

Dr. Agus, founding director and CEO of the Lawrence J. Ellison Institute for Transformative Medicine at USC, says it could be 12 to 18 months before a vaccine and because of that, changes are necessary to fight a virus that has proven to be devastating for some while others don't even know they have it. “This is an insidious enemy,” he notes. “Asymptomatic people can spread it, so even though you feel good and nothing is wrong, you may be a spreader. That’s what we all worry about and that’s why there’s going to be extra precautions for large gatherings.”

Agus adds that modes of interaction will have to be redefined including seating, spacing and even who is allowed in. “There may be immunity certificates showing those who can’t catch or it spread it any longer, allowing those people to walk the red carpet with confidence.”

Still, others remain skeptical that major events will return before there’s a vaccine or herd immunity. “Everyone feels this liability issue, so I don’t think we’ll see large-scale premieres or junkets until there’s a major breakthrough,” says one A-list publicist who questions how events will accommodate fan interactions, especially those during fan conventions and international press tours where stars can make personal contact with hundreds of fans.

Along with doing at least one red carpet for Timmy news this fall, I was very much looking forward to covering Timmy's London stage debut this spring and covering his possible Dune panel at Comic-Con in July. Chances of meeting him one on one were very low, but that wasn't so important as I was confident I would have other opportunities in the future. His play and an appearance at Comic-Con were unique opportunities for Club Chalamet to do what I created this platform for, to focus on the artistic endeavors of Timmy and write quality articles about his work and public appearances to share with the general public and especially fellow fans. We're all really raw and feeling frustrated and helpless in our particular scenarios surrounding our stay at home orders, but this is temporary and we will experience some easing up of these restrictions in due time. But restrictions to a degree will remain until a herd immunity is obtained, and better yet when a vaccine is created and deployed for everyone around the world.

Timmy and fans in California Oct 2018

I hope you take from this article the information you need to help navigate how you continue to support Timothée in these challenging times for all of us and remember that he's a fellow human being and he is a very popular young actor who will have to accept some new security protocols that will help keep him safe and healthy to continue to do the brilliant work that he does. One day you will get to meet him and give him a hug that he'll very much appreciate, but until then, we all have to continue to practice social distancing until the vaccine is available. 

Stay safe, stay positive, and wear a mask when social distancing cannot be avoided. We're all in this together!