Bocelli Invites Chalamet Amid Opera Controversy

has extended a concert invite to Timothée Chalamet after he made a controversial comment about the opera and ballet. 

The actor, 30, could be set for a big weekend at the  after earning his third Best Actor nod, but caused a stir last week when he suggested 'no one cares' about the classical arts.   

Becoming the latest performer to weigh in on the drama, legendary tenor Andrea, 67, said a 'sensitive' star like Timothée should understand the 'beauty, truth and emotion.'

In a statement to, he said: 'I am convinced that a sensitive performer like Timothée, who understands the power of emotions, may one day discover that opera and dance draw from that very same source.' 

Andrea went on to invite him to one of his concerts as a guest as people often 'keep our distance from what we have not yet truly encountered.'

'Sometimes it only takes a few minutes of hearing this music live to understand why, after centuries, it continues to be loved all over the world,' he said. 

Andrea added in his statement to PEOPLE: 'Opera and ballet are art forms that have crossed centuries and continue to speak to the human heart, because they answer a deep need for beauty, truth and emotion.' 

Timothée has faced fierce backlash over the comments that came from a resurfaced clip from a live conversation with Interstellar co-star Matthew McConaughey for Variety magazine. 

In the video, the actor said: 'I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera where it’s like, "Hey! Keep this thing alive", even though no one cares about this anymore.

'All respect to the ballet and opera people out there … I just lost 14 cents in viewership. I’m taking shots for no reason.'

Since the video went viral, he's been blasted by both worlds, including ballet dancer Misty Copeland, who even promoted Timothée's movie Marty Supreme on social media last year. 

Speaking at a panel for Aveeno, she said: 'First I have to say that it’s very interesting that he invited me to be a part of promoting Marty Supreme with respect to my art form.

'But I think that it’s important that we acknowledge that, yes, this is an art form that is not "popular" and a part of pop culture as movies are. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have enduring relevance in culture.

'I think it’s often mistaken when something is popular that it’s meaningful or more impactful. There’s a reason that the opera and ballet have been around for over 400 years.' 

Misty also argued that the Wonka star wouldn't be where he is today without its impact.

She continued: 'I mean, he wouldn’t be an actor and have the opportunities he has as a movie star if it weren’t for opera and ballet, and their relevance in that medium. All of these mediums have a space and we shouldn’t be comparing them.'

The film emerged as one of this year's biggest Academy Awards contenders, landing nine nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography and Best Film Editing. 

With the nomination, Chalamet became the youngest actor to receive three Best Actor nods since Marlon Brando in the 1950s. 

He was first nominated in 2018 for Call Me By Your Name and again in 2025 for his portrayal of Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown. Last year, he lost out to Adrien Brody for The Brutalist.

Elsewhere, West End icon Michael Ball, 63, who is renowned for his versatile baritone voice in musical theatre, has also hit out at 's careless comments.  

Speaking to Gaby Roslin on her Magic Radio show, he said: 'The human race have been dancing and singing since we could walk, since we came out of the primordial swamp, it ain't going anywhere.  

'Dancers go out and leave their hearts and quite a bit of blood on the dancefloor because they love it and the audience absolutely are entranced, and for someone to diss that.

'And the training and dedication for opera is extraordinary, the musicality, the skill. And it wouldn't be going if people didn't enjoy it and didn't want to see it and get something from it.'

Michael made his West End debut In 1985, where he was cast as Marius Pontmercy in the original production of Les Misérables. 

He has twice won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical. 

Hollywood star , singer  and the London's Royal Ballet have also hit out at Timothée's claims.

US opera singer Isabel Leonard took to social media to blast the Dune star's character as 'weak' and 'narrow-minded'.

She wrote: 'Honestly, I'm shocked that someone so seemingly successful can be so ineloquent and narrow-minded in his views about art while considering himself as an artist as I would only imagine one would as an actor.

'To take cheap shots at fellow artists says more in this interview than anything else he could say. Shows a lot about his character.

'You don't have to like all art but only a weak person/artist feels the need to diminish in fact, the very arts that would inspire those who are interested in slowing down, to do exactly that.'

While Canadian mezzo-soprano Deepa Johnny echoed her view, saying: 'What a disappointing take. There is nothing more impressive than the magic of live theatre, ballet and opera.

'We should be trying to uplift these art forms, these artists and come together across disciplines to do that. The impact of these mediums are long, long-lasting and life-changing.'

Timothée has previously been candid about the emotional sting of awards-season losses. 

'If there's five people at an awards show, and four people go home losing, you don't think those four people are at the restaurant like, 'Damn, we didn't win?' he told Vogue in November 2025. 

'People can call me a try-hard, and they can say whatever the f**k. But I'm the one actually doing it here.'

He echoed the sentiment during an appearance on SiriusXM, joking that it's 'uniquely hilarious' to go home empty-handed after preparing an acceptance speech

From the start of the awards season, Timothee was the runaway favorite for his performance in the commercially successful ping pong film Marty Supreme. 

He looked unassailable when he won a Golden Globe in January, and thanked his girlfriend Kylie Jenner from the stage.

But everything seems to be changing and Marty Supreme's night of disaster at the BAFTAs – where it won nothing despite 11 nominations – is making some pundits believe that Chalamet isn't going to get his Oscar on this, his third nomination.

Losing out at the Actor's Awards amplified that buzz.

The last actor to win the Oscar after losing both the BAFTA and the Actor Awards (formerly the SAG Awards), was George Clooney for Syriana – 20 years ago.

And if he wins – after previous nominations for A Complete Unknown and Call Me By Your Name – he would be the second-youngest best actor Oscar winner ever.