Legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese and Oscar nominated actor Timothee Chalamet have collaborated together for the first time and it’s not for any feature film, rather it’s for an ad. On 17 May, the French luxury label, Chanel released the long-awaited ad for its Bleu de Chanel men’s fragrance. It’s a 90 second long ad film featuring 28-year-old Chalamet in a dream-like version of New York City as he breaks free from the bounds of fame. With visionary director Scorsese at the helm, the ad features nearly as many shots as his recent feature and has more fun with the whole trying-to-sell-you-something routine than these things really should.
Everything to know about Timothee Chalamet’s new ad
It has been a year since it was announced that Timothee Chalamet is the newest ambassador for Chanel’s best-selling men’s fragrance. Since then, the hype has been generated as several photos of Scorsese and Chalamet surfaced on the internet, where the actor-director duo was seen strolling around New York City. Both Chalamet and Scorsese are prominent names in the Hollywood industry, and their collaboration is something worth looking forward to.
As their teamwork has finally dropped, it’s interesting to see how Scorsese has directed the Dune actor. Playing “Rockit” by Herbie Hancock in the background, the commercial begins with Chalamet waking up to his extravagant life as a star in his fictional Soho apartment and immediately launching into his busy, A-list schedule: being snapped by paparazzi to guest star on a late-night talk show. The film-within-a-film shows Chalamet haunted by his new project, which depicts a mysterious blue world, as it’s displayed on a billboard across from his apartment and on his TV screen.
There is a scene in the ad where the talk show host asks Timothee, “So when you are inside a role, do you destroy who you are?” To which Chalamet seems to go through a realization and responds profoundly by saying, “No, no, you reach into yourself; you find yourself.”
The Dune actor is then seen running away from the set and finding himself at an elevated subway stop in Queens, New York. As he gets on the train, Chalamet steps into the mysterious blue world, where he can finally express his authenticity as an artist.
The description for Chanel’s new ad reads: “The new Bleu de Chanel film is an invitation to discover the many facets of a man who is forging his own path. An actor’s conflict between celebrity and staying true to himself. A dialogue between Timothée Chalamet’s artistic sensibility and Martin Scorsese’s virtuosity.”
The luxury brand launched its product, Bleu de Chanel, in 2010. Upon its launch, French actor Gaspard Ulliel was the face of the product. He starred in his own short film for the fragrance, which was also directed by Scorsese. Ulliel held the position as Chanel’s first male ambassador until his death in 2022.
Bleu de Chanel is an aromatic scent with notes of sandalwood, citrus, labdanum, vetiver, and mint. The fragrance was originally composed by Jacques Polge and is now maintained by Chanel’s in-house perfumer, Olivier Polge, who is Jacques’ son.
