The demand for Timothée Chalamet has been sky-high ever since his impressive starring stint in Dune, but the latest statement from his agent indicated that he did not pursue another major role in a highly-anticipated sequel.
Aside from trying to bring peace to Arrakis in Dune, Chalamet has been making waves after starring in several notable movies, such as Don't Look Up and Bones and All. As a result, the Academy Award nominee's popularity has skyrocketed, leading fans to wonder what his next big role will be.
Ridley Scott's long-awaited sequel to Gladiator recently received an exciting casting update, with Chalamet being one of the names reported to have auditioned for the lead role. However, the Dune actor's agent has set the record straight on the matter.
Timothée Chalamet's Agent Denies Gladiator Casting Claims
As per the latest report from Deadline, Gladiator 2 tapped Paul Mescal (Normal People) to play the lead role, a grown-up Lucius Verus.
The Hollywood Reporter (THR)'s Borys Kit then followed up the report with the names that were chasing or being chased for the role, which included Miles Teller, Austin Butler, Eternals star Richard Madden, and Timothée Chalamet.
Discussing Film shared the news with a slightly different wording where the account mentioned that all of the actors mentioned in Kit's report "all auditioned" for the lead role:
“Austin Butler, Timothée Chalamet, Miles Teller, and Richard Madden all auditioned for the lead role in Ridley Scott’s Gladiator 2.
Paul Mescal won the role.”
This prompted Timothée Chalamet’s agent Brian Swardstrom to debunk Discussing Film's statement directly, denying the report that the actor auditioned for Gladiator 2 or any role "in more than seven years:"
“I know one of these actors was shooting a film in the Middle East for the past several months - and he hasn’t auditioned for anything in more than 7 years.”
Moreover, Deadline's Justin Kroll also responded to Kit's report, noting that Austin Butler did not meet with Ridley Scott since he was looking to take a break from acting after shooting three movies back-to-back.
What are Timothée Chalamet's Next Big Roles?
The latest statement from Timothée Chalamet's agent, Brian Swardstrom ,could be seen as a way of protecting his client while also reminding everyone of the actor's popularity.
Given that Chalamet hasn't auditioned for any role in more than seven years, this suggests that the studios trust his star power and hope that it is more than enough to bring in ticket sales.
While it's unfortunate for some fans that Chalamet didn't land the lead role for Gladiator 2, the actor still has huge upcoming roles this year.
Chalamet is set to return to planet Arrakis in Dune 2 alongside with Spider-Man: No Way Home actress Zendaya, with the sequel eyeing a November 3 release date this year.
After a month, the actor will then return to the big screen to star in another big movie in Wonka, a movie that is set before the events of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, telling the story of the famed candy maker. Wonka premieres in theaters on Friday, December 15.
