Timothée Chalamet Says He Paid 6 Figures For His SNL Performance

From showing up to his own lookalike contest to staging an 18-minute, meme-filled marketing Zoom for Marty Supreme, Timothée Chalamet isn’t afraid to put himself out there when it comes to promoting projects he cares about. Now, the Oscar nominee is looking back on a time when he shelled out some of his own cash — quite a lot of it — for a performance on his A Complete Unknown publicity tour.

SNL Sticker Shock

In January 2025, Chalamet played double duty as host and musical guest on Saturday Night Live. Days after receiving an Oscar nod for his portrayal of Bob Dylan, he played three of his personal favorite songs by the musician: “Outlaw Blues,” “Three Angels,” and “Tomorrow Is a Long Time.”

It was a rare move for the sketch comedy show, and as Chalamet shared at a Q&A in London on Feb. 1, he had to convince the powers that be. “Lorne Michaels said, ‘Hey, do you want to host SNL?’ I said, ‘Yeah, can I do the music?’ He’s like, ‘No.’ I said, ‘Alright, I’m not doing it,’” Chalamet recalled to filmmaker Richard Curtis, per Variety.

Chalamet said he “refused to take no for an answer,” and the SNL boss ultimately relented. But it still wasn’t an easy gig — as Chalamet said he “spent over six figures out of my pocket” to be able to perform. While it wasn’t immediately clear what that money went to, Entertainment Weekly reports that “Chalamet covered production expenses for his performances, including the band and construction of a set,” which would ordinarily be paid for by a record label.

Award Aspirations

During his Q&A, Chalamet spoke more generally about “trying to reach audiences” in new ways, but he doesn’t think of his eclectic stunts (see: walking around with friends with ping-pong balls for heads) as “marketing or promotion,” he said. “That sounds like a gimmick, and this is not a gimmick. This is coming from my heart and my soul.”

Curtis asked Chalamet if he wanted an Oscar — he’s received three Best Actor nods, including for Marty Supreme — and the actor admitted yes. “But I want to give you context for that, because sometimes I feel like I’ve been misinterpreted in my quest,” he added. “All these award things, they supplement the movie. I’m not going to turn this into a monologue about the crisis of theaters and stuff, but when you go to an awards show, everyone’s participating in an advertisement for each other — in the best sense of the word.”

Chalamet also reiterated that he knows awards aren’t that important, at the end of the day. “I don’t want it to be misinterpreted that the world is in the condition it’s in, and I’m going to bed like, ‘F*ck man, I need that [Oscar],’” he said. “You know, I’m living on planet Earth.”