Timothée Chalamet, Taylor Swift, and the age of the ego.

There was a time, not so long ago, when the Hollywood PR machine required every A-lister to act like their success was a total accident. They had to be humbled by every award, honoured by every nomination, and pretend they were surprised by every accolade that came their way. 

But not Timothée Chalamet.

The man who once seemed like the poster boy for soft, indie sensitivity has officially traded artistic modesty for something much louder. And honestly? It's giving us a bit of a whiplash-induced ick — but maybe that's our problem, not his.

Watch: Listen to Mamamia Out Loud unpacking the Timothée Chalamet controversy. Post continues after podcast.

Following his SAG Awards acceptance speech where he claimed to want to be "one of the greats", Timmy is once again making headlines. This time, it's for a series of viral, no-filter interviews on the Marty Supreme press tour. 

Most recently, in an interview with Margaret Gardiner and reflecting on his career, Timmy claimed that this was probably his best performance yet. 

"This is probably my best performance, you know, and it's been like seven, eight years that I feel like I've been handing in really, really committed, top-of-the-line performances," he said.

"And it's important to say it out loud because the discipline and the work ethic I'm bringing to these things — I don't want people to take it for granted. I don't want to take it for granted. This is really some top-level shit."

The reaction was swift. 

Image: A24

Online the comments were a mix of fans saying he was authentic for this and others calling him out for being arrogant. Some people were calling him a "try-hard," claiming the self-assuredness felt egotistical and intentionally provocative.

But here's the thing: Is he actually lying?

Timothée is championing the era of the ego. And he's not the only A-list celebrity who's doing it. So is Taylor Swift. 

Think back to her recent documentary series, Taylor Swift: The End of an Era, and the way she frames her narrative. There is no way to watch her work without thinking 'that woman is unbelievable'. She runs what is essentially a small nation; she is a CEO, a songwriter, and a logistical marvel.

She produced a six-part documentary that essentially says: "Look at how hard I work, look at how great I am, and look at how much I deserve this." 

For a long time, we were taught that people should wait for others to give them their flowers. But maybe that time is gone. It may have felt jarring at first — the kind of thing that has you asking if you're even allowed to make a film about your own greatness — but the answer turned out to be a resounding yes.

Image: Disney+

We are moving away from the era of the relatable celebrity who eats pizza in a ballgown and pretends to be normal when their life is anything but. We're entering the era of the expert.

The old rule used to be that you should be talented but act like you don't know it so you don't intimidate people. The new rule is simply to own the work. If you put in the 10,000 hours and achieve something world-class, the logic goes that you shouldn't have to pretend it was all just a stroke of luck.

I can't say I'm there yet, but maybe we should get comfy with it. In a world where everyone is manifesting and main character-ing their own lives, why shouldn't the people who are actually at the top of their game admit they're doing a good job? 

If Timothée Chalamet is the one to finally kill off the fake-modesty press tour, we might just have to thank him for it, even if it feels a little bit ego-heavy for now.

Feature Image: Getty.