Timothée Chalamet Calls Armie Hammer Allegations ‘Disorienting,’ Reveals Tom Cruise Sent Him an Email With Lists of Stunt Trainers: It Was a ‘War Cry’

variety.com:

Zack Sharf Digital News Director In a lengthy new cover story for GQ magazine, Timothée Chalamet reveals that Tom Cruise sent him an email after they met following the production of “Dune” in which Cruise offered up a list of all the stunt trainers, motorcycle coaches and more that Chalamet could reach out to. “He basically said, in Old Hollywood, you would be getting dance training and fight training, and nobody is going to hold you to that standard today.

So it’s up to you,” Chalamet recalled. “The email was really like a war cry.” Chalamet is a huge Cruise fan, admitting to watching “Top: Gun Maverick” eight times in theaters while in Budapest filming “Dune: Part Two” in the summer and fall of 2022.

The actor even bought out a movie theater to bring the whole “Dune” cast and crew to see Cruise’s blockbuster. “’Top Gun’ was just hugely inspiring to me last summer when we were making ‘Dune’,” Chalamet said. “Some of the crew were kind of scoffing at going, but I just thought it was one of the greatest films I’ve ever seen.” While Chalamet did not confirm whether or not he got in touch with the stunt trainers Cruise recommended, “Dune” director Denis Villeneuve definitely saw a change in his leading man from “Part One” to “Part Two.” “Action-wise,” Villeneuve said, “I felt that he was much more trained than in ‘Part One,’ and ready for the fighting sequences.

I was impressed by his level of discipline for ‘Part Two.’ You know, when you are the lead on a movie, there’s a presence, the way you approach your work and your discipline will necessarily have a ripple effect on the rest of the crew.