Theater students at Hibbing High School talk shop with Wonka actor Timothée Chalamet
HIBBING, Minn. — Some high school students on the Iron Range got the surprise of a lifetime when Oscar-nominated actor Timothée Chalamet stopped by a Hibbing High School theater class Thursday. Chalamet was in town preparing for a role in a Bob Dylan biopic.
"Well, there were three of us who knew that he was in town and I was one of them," said Megan Reynolds, Hibbing High School drama coach.
Megan Reynolds says it all began when a couple of local Hibbing historians told her there's a VIP, and he'd like to visit.
"And I kind of rolled my eyes and I said, 'Okay, well, who's the VIP then?' Well, it is Timothée Chalamet. And I said, 'What time would he like to come?'" Reynolds said.
Reynolds says she knew about the visit the night before and told no one.
"When he found out that they were going to be theater students in the theater that he was going to tour it was his request that he'd speak with them," said Reynolds. "So we obliged."
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It was Thursday, and the students had just finished rehearsing a final scene for their upcoming play.
"We have a guest who wanted to meet you all and speak with you. This is Timothée Chalamet, everyone," said Reynolds. "It was kind of an audible gasp in the room and just stunned silence."
When asked about the students' reaction Reynolds said it felt like a bunch of theater kids sitting around talking shop. Reynolds said Chalamet sat down with the students for about 20 minutes asking them what they were working on. The students got to ask him questions like how he got his start, and about his different roles. The visit ended with selfies.
Reynolds says it's hard for arts programs and rural schools to get noticed. She says she appreciates such a big star stopping at their small school.
"I think it was really kind and generous of Timothée to spend his time with my theater students," said Reynolds. "And give my art students who work incredibly hard and are incredibly dedicated to what they do and see themselves reflected back."
Chalamet's new Bob Dylan biopic, called "A Complete Unknown," is scheduled to start shooting in March.