Does Timothée Chalamet represent contemporary male beauty?

The surfer, the skater, the rocker, the athlete, the intellectual, the model, the androgynous, the metrosexual, the footballer, the poet, the artist, the tamarack (or maranza), the trapper, the influencer: male beauty is diverse and multi-faceted, and different, unprecedented types are jumping onto the stage without fear of showing themselves, especially in this day and age. The ideal man, who frees himself from the constraints that make him physically lustful and pathologically incapable of expressing feelings, who has no interest in grooming himself and who is afraid of any expression associated with femininity, is changing, becoming broader and more diverse, exploring places and peaks he has never been, or at least not in front of the whole world. So many variables contribute to this slow but steady change.

There is the fashion industry, for one, offering more relaxed, open, colourful, gender-neutral and unisex clothing. There is the beauty industry, which is expanding its face, body and make-up care lines to a male audience, certainly for market reasons, but also to meet a need and demand that has perhaps never been so present and urgent. There are the film stars who are changing with the shift in the ideal of masculinity, giving us a new idea of glamour and sensuality. It is pointless to argue with extremes and compare, for example, the polished elegance of the 1950s with the genderfluid elegance of 2020. There are these extremes, but in between are the changes and nuances, the decade-long movements that then explode and crystallise into the personalities they represent in the eyes of the less observant and the general public.








When French-American actor Timothée Chalamet emerged as a new beauty icon in the world of US and then international cinema (in both 2017's Lady Bird and Call Me By Your Name), the transformation that had been underway for some time manifested itself in full force, finally becoming clear for all to see in the 1995-born hopeful's graceful stature, tousled hair and high cheekbones. Some have compared him to a very young Leonardo DiCaprio, but his Byronic beauty (rather than the angelic Renaissance beauty of the blond, 22-year-old Leo in 1996's Romeo+Juliet). and his disruptive power in changing the rules of the game perhaps make him more comparable to Kate Moss, who in the 1990s, with her grunge walk and petite stature, managed to make her mark in a beauty canon represented by Gianni Versace's Valkyries. Timmy and Kate also share high cheekbones and a haggard look. What they do not have in common, however, is their lifestyle. While Kate has made her chaotic lifestyle and hanging out with rock stars and starlets an integral part of her beauty and character, Timothée lets his Victorian beauty and style speak for itself. He always proves to be friendly and helpful, a friend to all and extremely professional, trying not to mix his love life (rumour has it he is dating Kylie Jenner) and personal life with his work life. These are different times, celebrity culture is changing: superstars are now more people and less characters, and they have the opportunity to choose who they want to be, regardless of the storyline and the needs of the brand.

Chalamet is a smart guy who makes a lot of choices. We will soon see him in the second film of the Dune saga as the main character Paul Atreides and in Wonka. In addition, filming will soon begin on the biopic about the life of Bob Dylan. He will be the absolute protagonist in this film as well. Also a few days ago, there was an interesting piece of news: our favourite actor is the new face of the main men's fragrance of the French fashion house Chanel, Bleu, taking over the role previously held by the late Gaspard Ulliel. This news is interesting from two points of view. Not only does it cement the 27-year-old's status as a sex symbol and rid him of his boyish looks to make him an adult, desirable and aspiring model, but it also confirms what has been in the air for a while: the man is changing. His interests change, his attention to beauty, the care he gives to his person, his sensitivity. Of course, Timothée is not the only example of this change. This new group of men who are free to experiment and feel sexy without having to adhere to outdated beauty ideals also includes, for example, Harry Styles (who has launched a nail varnish and cosmetics line called Pleasing) and Matty Healy, who fits the stereotype of the thin, sickly alternative rocker but is involved with the blonde pop star Taylor Swift, proving once again that more and more women are interested in the new modern man.