How Timothée Chalamet Quietly Became Christmas’ Biggest Star

Timothée Chalamet’s rise as a holiday season force didn’t happen overnight, but this Christmas cemented what has quietly become a pattern. 

For the third year in a row, the actor anchored one of the most talked-about films of the festive Box Office stretch, proving his appeal spans genres, generations, and audience expectations. 

As studios search for stars who can guarantee a crowd, Chalamet’s name has become increasingly synonymous with Christmas moviegoing.

Chalamet officially claimed his third consecutive Christmas season win with A24’s original sports dramedy “Marty Supreme.”

The film, released on December 25, earned $17.4 million over the traditional weekend and $27.1 million across the four-day holiday frame, placing it third behind “Avatar: Fire and Ash” and “Zootopia 2.” 

That performance marked the second-biggest opening weekend in A24’s history and pushed total domestic ticket sales to $28.3 million after a prior limited release.

“This was a gutsy, creative risk — a period sports drama — and it’s going to pay off, thanks to Chalamet and great holiday playing time,” David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research told Variety. 

The strong showing followed the movie star’s earlier holiday hits “Wonka” in 2023 and “A Complete Unknown” in 2024, reinforcing his hold on the season.

Timothée Chalamet’s Christmas box office reign began with “Wonka,” which debuted to $39 million and eventually earned $634 million worldwide. 

The following year, “A Complete Unknown” opened modestly on Christmas Day but went on to gross $140 million globally. 

Neither film relied on record-breaking debuts. Instead, both benefited from the lucrative stretch between Christmas and New Year’s, traditionally the busiest moviegoing week of the year.

Speaking about Chalamet’s success, Comscore’s Paul Dergarabedian noted, “No matter the genre, whether it’s a musical, biopic, sci-fi or comedy, his choice in the material and collaborators has made him not only a bona fide movie star, but a box-office draw.” 

Unlike “Wonka” or “A Complete Unknown,” “Marty Supreme” is a fully original film, made with a $70 million budget, the biggest in A24’s history. 

That scale means staying power matters, but the early signs are encouraging. 

The movie holds a 95% Rotten Tomatoes rating and a “B+” CinemaScore from audiences, with about 65% of ticket buyers younger than 35.

To keep the movie from fading, Chalamet turned himself into a one-man marketing machine. 

He handed out the viral 1950s-esque windbreaker, flew a Nickelodeon-orange blimp, climbed the Sphere in Las Vegas, and repeated the phrase “Marty Supreme. Christmas Day” until it caught on. 

According to Exhibitor Relations analyst Jeff Bock, “The promotional work he’s done with this film is high-level genius.”

This Christmas box office was dominated by heavyweights. 

According to Variety, “Avatar: Fire and Ash” remained No. 1 with $64 million over the weekend and $760 million worldwide after two weekends, while “Zootopia 2” surged past $1.42 billion globally. 

Despite that competition, “Marty Supreme” still emerged as the strongest debut among new releases. 

“Marty Supreme enjoyed the best debut among newcomers,” analysts noted, attributing the success to Josh Safdie’s direction and Chalamet’s star power. 

“Sports dramas are not big movies to begin with, but the right cast can elevate them,” Gross said. “Timothée Chalamet is making that kind of difference.”

Meanwhile, Chalamet is grabbing attention, not just for his dramatic lead in “Marty Supreme,” but for a bizarre scene he insisted on doing himself that has got people talking. 

As The Blast reported, in the film, Chalamet’s character Marty Mauser must endure a public spanking with a paddle as part of a tense agreement with businessman Milton Rockwell, played by Kevin O’Leary. 

Production originally planned to use a stunt double and a comfortable prop, but when the fake paddle broke early in filming, Chalamet refused the double and chose to take the hits himself. 

According to O’Leary, he walked onto set and declared, “No, it’s got to be my *ss. I’m going to immortalize my *ss on film in perpetuity,” before allowing the scene to be shot with the real wooden paddle, taking multiple takes even as the costume crew felt the impact. 

The moment quickly became one of the movie’s most talked-about scenes, with O’Leary joking that the actor’s commitment “freaks me out even now” and that Chalamet’s choice to perform the physically demanding bit added an unforgettable and unexpected touch to the movie.