Charlize Theron has added her voice to growing criticism of Timothée Chalamet after his remarks that many saw as dismissive of ballet and opera. Speaking to the New York Times, Theron called his comments “very reckless” and said she hoped to confront him about them in person. She argued that while technology may change some creative jobs, it cannot replace a live performer on stage.
Theron — who trained as a teenager at the Joffrey Ballet in New York until a knee injury ended her dance career — emphasized the physical toll of ballet. She described the training as brutal and said dancers endure injuries and relentless schedules, recalling times when blisters became infected and there was no opportunity to rest. Her comments underscored her belief that ballet and opera deserve active support and recognition.
Chalamet’s original remarks came in February during a conversation with Matthew McConaughey, when he said he did not want to work in ballet or opera and questioned efforts to keep those art forms alive if public interest has waned. The comments prompted backlash from a range of artists and public figures, including Jamie Lee Curtis, Sam Taylor-Johnson, Misty Copeland, Eva Mendes and Helen Hunt. Luca Guadagnino, who directed Chalamet in Call Me By Your Name, defended him, saying one comment should not become a global controversy.
Theron’s interview with the paper also covered personal history. She spoke about growing up in South Africa and the night her mother shot her father in an act later ruled self-defence. Describing her father as a functioning alcoholic, Theron said that when he returned to the family home in June 1991 and tried to force his way in, he fired shots through the door. She recounted the terror of holding the door closed with her mother and that, miraculously, none of the bullets struck them.
Theron recalled that her mother then retrieved a gun from a safe and shot her father. South African authorities did not charge her mother after deciding the shooting was self-defence. Theron said her mother quickly tried to move on from the incident, sending her to boarding school the next morning — a pragmatic response, she suggested, that helped them cope even if it was not ideal.
Theron’s interventions link her personal history of rigorous dance training and resilience with a defense of live performing arts, while also reflecting on trauma from her childhood that shaped her life.