Walk through New York City’s Washington Square Park on any given day and you’re bound to run into a few Timothée Chalamet lookalikes—scrawny guys with mops of curly brown hair. They could be skateboarding, smoking, or even reading A People’s History of the United States, à la Chalamet’s sad-boy character Kyle in Ladybird.
But today was not just any day. Brunette twenty-something men (and some women) from Manhattan to as far away as Wisconsin gathered for the Timothée Chalamet lookalike competition in Greenwich Village. The event flier had been making the rounds on social media over the past couple weeks, and thousands RSVPed to a Partiful invitation created by “Gilbert,” an anonymous host who turned out to be Anthony Po, a YouTuber with 1.8 million subscribers. Po also served as emcee for the competition, channeling Chalamet’s Wonka in a top hat and tux.
While the lookalikes competed for a $50 cash prize and a six-foot tall trophy, many onlookers were in search of love. A girl named Madeline had DIYed a shirt saying “If you look like Timothée Chalamet, text me ASAP.”
Though the event kicked off at Washington Square Park, police quickly broke it up since Po did not obtain a permit (he was also fined $500, according to reports). However, Po was undeterred, leading the dozen or so Timothées along with hundreds of spectators to a secondary location at Mercer Playground, a five-minute walk down the street.
“Timothée Chalamet could actually be here and none of us would know,” I overheard a woman tell her friend. And that was pretty much what happened (except soon everybody knew, thanks to social media). While the fake Timothées were all being herded to the playground, the real Timothée did show up to Washington Square Park. And I missed it. I couldn’t be bitter about it for too long though, because I was surrounded by at least a dozen equally handsome (and more available) lookalikes.
The competition portion of the event was a bit strange and disorganized, as Po interviewed roughly a dozen Fake Timmys. Miss America-like questions about the lookalikes’ plans for world peace were peppered in among more Chalamet-specific asks, like if contestants could speak French, or what they thought of the actor’s girlfriend, Kylie Jenner. And after much deliberation, a panel of four judges crowned Miles Mitchell, a 21-year-old from Staten Island dressed as Chalamet’s Willy Wonka, as the winner. What made him stand out?
