JOSEPH KAHN CALLS HOLLYWOOD A "HIGHSCHOOL COLLECTION OF MEAN KIDS" AS MISTY COPELAND SEEMINGLY SHADES TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET THROUGH OSCAR PERFORMANCE. (PHOTO)

 Joseph Kahn calls Hollywood a "highschool collection of mean kids" as Misty Copeland seemingly shades Timothée Chalamet through Oscar performance

Director Joseph Kahn weighed in on Misty Copeland’s Oscar performance, suggesting it was aimed at Timothée Chalamet after his controversial remarks about ballet. 

Kahn shared Grok’s fact check, which implied Copeland agreed to perform following Chalamet’s comments, and criticized Hollywood as a “high school collection of mean kids” who bully those who step out of line. 

His remarks came after New York Magazine reported that Copeland had come out of retirement specifically to respond to Chalamet.

The controversy began on February 24, when Chalamet told Matthew McConaughey during a conversation in Texas that art forms like ballet and opera no longer mattered to modern audiences. 

He said he didn’t want to work in fields where people were simply trying to keep traditions alive despite waning interest. His comments drew backlash, including from Copeland, who retired in October 2025. 

She countered that ballet and opera have endured for centuries and can profoundly change lives when people have access to them.

Copeland also noted the irony of Chalamet inviting her to promote his film Marty Supreme while dismissing ballet’s relevance. 

She later performed at the Oscars for Sinners, another Best Picture contender, and reiterated that cinema itself owes much to older art forms like ballet and opera, which shaped storytelling long before movies existed. 

Copeland emphasized that these traditions should not be diminished or compared unfavorably, arguing that Chalamet’s career would not exist without the influence of such art.