Seattle Opera Cashes in on Timothée Chalamet Drama With Cheeky Discount Code

The Seattle Opera fired off a tongue-in-cheek rebuttal in response to Timothée Chalamet’s comments about the ballet and opera on Saturday. The company announced a discount code—the actor’s first name—for its upcoming productions of “Carmen,” making the best of a social media firestorm that engulfed the Oscar-nominated “Marty Supreme” star.

“All we’ve got to say is… use promo code TIMOTHEE to save 14% off select seats for Carmen, through this weekend only. Timmy, you’re welcome to use it too See you at the opera!” the opera captioned an Instagram post promoting the show.

The furor began after a video of the actor saying “no one cares” about the ballet or opera surfaced online.

“I don’t wanna be working in ballet or opera or, you know, things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive even though it’s like, no one cares about this thing anymore,’” Chalamet said during last month’s Variety and CNN town hall when speaking about the existential threat facing movie theaters. “All respect to the ballet and opera people out there. I just lost 14 cents in viewership, but um, yeah, I just took shots for no reason.”

The actor became the subject of plenty of responses from stage stars and opera houses. The Metropolitan Opera House wrote on social media in response, “This one is for you, Timothée Chalamet,” before showing some of the behind-the-scenes work that goes into making one of its productions.

The Royal Ballet and Opera said in a statement, “Ballet and opera have never existed in isolation — they have continually informed, inspired, and elevated other art forms. Their influence can be felt across theatre, film, contemporary music, fashion, and beyond. For centuries, these disciplines have shaped the way artists create and audiences experience culture, and today millions of people around the world continue to enjoy and engage with them.”

Others, such as reporter Billy Binion, have defended the actor. “Y’all, come on. I used to work for an opera company. My checks—which I needed to pay rent—bounced more than once,” he said. “Glib phrasing aside, Timothée Chalamet is right: very few people care about opera. It sucks, but that’s reality.”

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