Timothée Hal Chalamet was born in Manhattan. His parents are Nicole Flender, who works in real estate and is a dancer, and Marc Chalamet, who is a UNICEF editor. His mother hails from New York and has Jewish roots, with Russian Jewish and Austrian Jewish heritage. His father, originally from Nîmes, France, has a mix of French and English ancestry. Timothée has a sister named Pauline Chalamet and is the nephew of director Rodman Flender, as well as the grandson of screenwriter Harold Flender.
Growing up, Timothée was part of a family that embraced the arts. He began his journey in the entertainment industry by appearing in commercials and participating in the New York theater scene. He also attended the LaGuardia High School of Music, Art, and Performing Arts, where he befriended actor Ansel Elgort. Interestingly, both Timothée and Ansel received their first Golden Globe nominations in the same year, 2017. Additionally, Timothée briefly attended Columbia University.
His film debut came in 2014 when he played a high school student in Jason Reitman’s “Men, Women & Children” and portrayed Matthew McConaughey’s character’s teenage son in “Interstellar.”
Subsequently, he took on substantial roles in various independent films, such as portraying the younger version of writer Stephen Elliott in “The Adderall Diaries,” playing the male lead Zac in the drama “One and Two,” and taking on the role of Billy in the road trip drama “Miss Stevens.” On the stage, he appeared in plays like “The Talls” by Anna Kerrigan and John Patrick Shanley’s autobiographical “Prodigal Son.” On television, he had minor roles in the film “Loving Leah” (2009), a significant part in “Law & Order” (1990), and more substantial roles on shows like “Royal Pains” (2009) and “Homeland” (2011), among others.
Timothée’s breakthrough came in 2017 when he landed notable supporting roles in the western film “Hostiles” and as a high school crush in “Lady Bird.” He also starred in a leading role as Elio, a seventeen-year-old Italian Jewish boy who embarks on a romance with his father’s older assistant, portrayed by Armie Hammer, in Luca Guadagnino’s drama “Call Me by Your Name.” His portrayal of Elio received widespread critical acclaim, earning him nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actor and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Drama, along with several other awards from critics’ groups.
In 2018, Timothée took on the role of Nic Sheff, a character struggling with substance abuse, in the drama “Beautiful Boy.” In 2019, he starred in Woody Allen’s comedy “A Rainy Day in New York” alongside Selena Gomez, portrayed King Henry V of England in the historical drama “The King,” and played the love interest Laurie in Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of “Little Women.”
