Nov 8
Timothée Chalamet Was just the Start – Lookalike Contests Take Off
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
Last month's Timothée Chalamet lookalike contest in New York was "pandemonium," but that hasn't stopped similar celebrity lookalike contests from springing up around the world.
NYC's Chalamet contest sparked a police response, with one person arrested and organizers hit with a fine – and the event only got crazier when the real deal showed up. Yes, Timothée Chalamet attended his own lookalike contest – though he didn't win.
21-year-old Miles Mitchell, who lives on Staten Island, took the $50 prize. At least two similar contests have taken place recently – one of them in honor of another queer favorite, Paul Mescal.
That contest took place in Dublin on Nov. 7, Forbes detailed. "Young Irish men gathered in Smithfield Square donning outfits inspired by Mescal, including his usual style of short Gaelic football shorts, a jacket or sweater and wired earbuds," the news outlet said.
UK newspaper the Guardian reported that the winner, Jack Wall O'Reilly, scored a check for 20 pounds "or 3 pints" and told the press that he attributed his victory to already having won "the genetic Paul Mescal lottery..."
In his acceptance speech, O'Reilly told the crowd that "it's good to have events like these as people are having a rough time."
"I don't think anyone would have given the Timothée Chalamet one airtime if we weren't all a bit miserable," the ersatz Paul Mescal added.
"A Harry Styles lookalike competition, also inspired by the Chalamet event, is set to take place in Soho Square in London on 9 November," the Guardian noted.
Forbes also reported on upcoming lookalike contests. "The day after the Chalamet lookalike contest, flyers went up around New York for an upcoming Jeremy Allen White lookalike contest," Forbes relayed, "in which the attendee who most resembles the Emmy-winning star of 'The Bear' will receive two packs of cigarettes and a 7-day Metro Card for the subway."
That contest, as well as one in Brooklyn for a Zayn Malik lookalike contest, is slated for Nov. 17. A week earlier, in San Francisco, hopefuls will compete in a Dev Patel lookalike contest.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
