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Renowned director Steven Spielberg has become the latest figure in the entertainment industry to criticise Timothée Chalamet's dismissive remarks about ballet and opera this week. The Oscar-contender conversed with Matthew McConaughey last month about the challenges of maintaining cinema's relevance, with Chalamet expressing that he did not want his work to end up like ballet or opera, where "no one cares about this anymore."

Speaking at a University of Texas event, Chalamet stated: "I don't want to be working in ballet, or opera, or things where it's like, 'Hey, keep this thing alive, even though like no one cares about this anymore.'" He swiftly added his "respect to the ballet and opera people out there," but it wasn't sufficient to quell the ensuing backlash, reports the Mirror. In addition to facing reproach from ballerinas and opera singers, and stage performers more generally, Chalamet has also been criticised by fellow filmmakers. Spielberg is the latest to enter the debate, sharing his views at the South by Southwest film festival.

He said: "But for me, the real experience comes when we can influence a community to congregate in a strange, dark space where all of us are strangers.

"At the end of a really good movie experience, we are all united with a whole bunch of feelings that we walk into the daylight with, or into the nighttime with. And there's nothing like that. It happens in movies, and in concerts." He slyly added: "And it happens in ballet and opera, by the way."

Meanwhile, Jamie Lee Curtis circulated a video by Zach McNally in which he questioned: "Why is Timothée Chalamet taking shots at opera and ballet? Why are any artists taking shots at any other artist in the time where artificial intelligence threatens literally all art forms, except performing art like plays, ballets and operas and musicals."

Broadway star Nathan Lane labelled Chalamet a "schmuck" on The View, adding: "Well, one doesn't want to give this more attention than it deserves and yet....you know it was kind of kaleidoscopic in its stupidity and insensitivity and yet strangely telling about where we are in this country."

Chalamet, 30, has received a nomination for Best Actor at the 98th Academy Awards for his role in Marty Supreme, which is also in contention for Best Picture. However, the Wonka star is regarded as unlikely to triumph on Sunday, March 15.

An insider revealed that Timothée has "blown his chances for a few reasons," one of them being his flamboyant persona. Whilst speaking to The U.S. Sun, the source explained: "Nominees who are favoured more tend to be more understated and Timothee is the opposite of that.

"Then there's Kylie," they continued. "Whilst I certainly would never place any blame on her, she's done nothing wrong, it does shift the narrative when the leading Oscar nominee brings a Kardashian as their date.

"Many people have preconceived notions of what that means."