Jamie Lloyd Says Directing Timothée Chalamet as HAMLET 'Would Be a Dream Come True'

Amid his success with the Tony-nominated Sunset Boulevard, director Jamie Lloyd is looking ahead to possible future collaborations. "[I] would love to work with Timothée Chalamet," the director told IndieWire in a recent interview. "I would love to do his ‘Hamlet.’ Chalamet as Hamlet would be a dream come true."

Chalamet recently received critical acclaim and an Academy Award nomination for her portrayal of Bob Dylan in 2024's A Complete Unknown. Though he has yet to star on Broadway, Chalamet's off-Broadway credits include The Talls in 2011 and John Patrick Shanley's Prodigal Son at Manhattan Theatre Club in 2016.

In the interview, Lloyd also named Ayo Edebiri as a performer he hopes to work with, adding that he would also be open to exploring work with some of his former collaborators. "Going on a journey with people, you develop a shorthand and a kind of trust. It’s so immediate that you can get into that rehearsal room on day one and you’re just creating right from the off, because everyone feels really comfortable and really confident.”

Patti LuPone, who originated the role of Norma Desmond, has praised Lloyd's stripped-down production of Sunset Boulevard, despite a few quibbles: "I would love to have seen costumes," she said in a recent conversation with George Clooney. "I don’t know why they went outside on the street to sing ‘Sunset Blvd.'”

Lloyd responded to her criticism in the IndieWire interview, noting how art can speak to each person differently: “That’s the great thing about theater and all art, isn’t it, is that it’s all so subjective,” he said. “They do wear costumes; they’re just not like the costumes that you traditionally associate with ‘Sunset.’ They’re kind of contemporary costumes, because the idea is that ostensibly it’s still set in like 1949, 1950, but no one needs to look, behave, and dress in the way that those people would.” Check out his full thoughts at Indiewire.

Jamie Lloyd's reimagination of Sunset Boulevard is currently playing at the St. James Theatre. The production has received seven Tony Award nominations, making it the most nominated revival of the season. Other current and upcoming projects include this summer's West End production of Evita starring Rachel Zegler and Waiting for Godot with Keanu Reeves, coming to Broadway later this year. 

Past productions include the Broadway revival of Betrayal (2019) with Tom Hiddleston, the West End production of The Seagull (2020-2021) with Emilia Clarke, the Brooklyn Academy of Music's production of Cyrano de Bergerac (2022) with James McAvoy, and the Broadway revival of A Doll's House (2023) with Jessica Chastain.