Timothée Chalamet 'Wonka' Cover: Can He Earn an Oscar Over Chilling 'Pure Imagination' Rendition?

Timothée Chalamet
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Timothée Chalamet is one of the most promising young actors in the past few years. With films like "Little Women," "Call Me By Your Name," "Dune," and "Don't Look Up," many wouldn't actually mistake him for a singer.

Unbeknownst to many, Chalamet is a graduate of Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts and he has a background in musical theatre and performance.

While he didn't pursue music and theatre, his singing skills became apparent in his performance in "Wonka," which is now earning huge Oscar buzz.

Timothée Chalamet 'Pure Imagination' Reactions

Among the biggest compliments on Timothée Chalamet's performance was his cover of "Pure Imagination."

For fans who were curious if he was actually the one singing in the movie, Business Insider confirmed that he actually was the one. Although it wasn't recorded live, Chalamet's willingness to sing despite it not being his strongest suit warrants acclaim.

In fact, director Paul King handed Chalamet the role after he saw his high school videos on YouTube.

"His high school musical performances are on YouTube and have hundreds of thousands of views. I knew from stanning for Timmy Chalamet that he could sing and dance really well," he told Rolling Stone.

On YouTube, Chalamet's "Pure Imagination" cover received rave reviews.

"This guy literally made this sound like a Disney song - definitely crying when this comes on in the theatres," a user said.

"I almost cried when he finally sang this song. Tried hard not to, tbh. Absolutely loved this film. It was hilarious, magical and had a lot of heart. One for the whole family. I sound like a commercial but it was amazing," another commented.

"Literally got chills from this, Timothée Chalamet really killed it!" a fan posted.

"This dude better get an Oscar. I just watched the movie, and I want to buy the DVD and eat chocolate," someone said.

Can Timothée Chalamet Win An Oscar for 'Wonka'?

Technically, Timothée Chalamet can be nominated for the Best Actor category for "Wonka."

However his cover of "Pure Imagination" might not be because it hasn't been shortlisted for the Best Original Song category and since it was released in 1971 for the original Willy Wonka film, a 2023 cover wouldn't actually be eligible due to the nature of the category.

Tags
Timothée Chalamet, Oscars, Academy awards
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