NEW YORK – Actor Timothée Chalamet made a surprise appearance at his own look-alike contest in Lower Manhattan on Sunday, an event that drew hundreds of onlookers, a dispersal order from police and at least one arrest.
Flanked by bodyguards, Chalamet briefly posed for photos with his high-cheeked, curly haired doppelgängers, some of whom had dressed as the actor’s characters in “Wonka” and the “Dune” movies.
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But just as the wannabe-Chalamets began strutting along a red carpet in Washington Square Park, police ordered the large group to disperse, slapping organizers with a $500 fine for an “unpermitted costume contest.”
At least one contestant was taken away in handcuffs, though police did not immediately say why. A spokesperson for the NYPD said charges were pending.
“It started off as a silly joke and now it’s turned pandemonium,” said Paige Nguyen, a producer for the YouTube personality Anthony Po, who staged the event.
The organizers had posted flyers for the contest — which promised a $50 prize to the winner — around New York in recent days, spurring social media speculation and thousands of RSVPs to an online invite.
After leaving the park, the group soon found a backup location in a nearby playground, where more than a dozen contestants competed for audience approval from a makeshift stage.
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“It’s all in the nose,” said Lauren Klas, a 27-year-old graphic designer who clung to a fence post to get a better view of the stage. “All of his bone structure, really.”
After winnowing down the group down to four, the remaining contestants were asked about their French proficiency, their plans to make the world a better place and their romantic intentions with Kylie Jenner. Chalamet and Jenner are said to be a couple.
Eventually, a winner was chosen: Miles Mitchell, a 21-year-old Staten Island resident, who dressed in a purple Willy Wonka outfit and tossed candy to the crowd from a brief case.
As he stood next to a novelty-size check written out to “Best Tim," a group of admirers lined up for the chance to take a photo — or exchange social media profiles — with the winner.
“I’m excited and I’m also overwhelmed,” Mitchell said. “There were so many good look-alikes. It was really a toss-up.”