Hollywood has thrived on iconic duos ever since its start: Hepburn and Tracy, Gosling and Stone, and Affleck and Damon, just to name a few. All of these have a sense of chemistry, either romantic or platonic, and when paired together in films, they only elevate the media. Another two come to mind, yet don’t receive the recognition they deserve: Saoirse Ronan and Timothée Chalamet. While they only acted together in two movies, both of which were directed by Greta Gerwig, it seriously makes you consider why they aren’t as common as you’d imagine them to be.
They first appear together in “Lady Bird,” a 2017 film that follows a teenage girl, Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson, as she navigates her senior year at a Catholic school, trying to overcome her family’s financial struggles and strained relationships to travel east and attend a prestigious New York university. With Ronan playing Lady Bird, and Chalamet playing one of her love interests – Kyle – their relationship helped make the movie truly a blockbuster.
“Lady Bird” emphasises the reality of teenage relationships, both romantic and platonic, and how life isn’t always a fantasy. She feels an absence of love from her parents, so she seeks it out from boys, which, predictably, doesn’t go well. Lady Bird goes directly from dating a seemingly perfect boy, who turns out to be gay, to dating Kyle, your typical bad-boy in a band, who is played by Chalamet. Kyle, in particular, is the antithesis of boyfriend material, from lying to Lady Bird about being a virgin and then gaslighting her about it, to honking to pick her up for prom, then ultimately changing his mind about going without her consultation. While unfortunate, their relationship is something that many viewers can relate to, especially teenage girls. Having to lower standards to seek male attention after finding out your boyfriend isn’t actually attracted to you may be a specific situation, but it is a feeling that many high school students understand.
Lady Bird’s relationship with Kyle wouldn’t be as relatable without the casting of Ronan and Chalmet. Additionally, the chemistry they have – or lack thereof in the characters’ case – couldn’t be replicated if two other actors tried. Ronan’s portrayal of an insecure and self-discovering girl and Chalamet’s performance of an aloof and nonchalant teenage boy blend perfectly, sometimes making one forget that it’s all an act. Chalamet balances the idea of a caricature of a boy and a completely dull person, which he then turns into the perfectly exaggerated character that we know as Kyle. In addition, Ronan has Lady Bird chase after the idea of Kyle, blinding herself to his detachment, in a way that fits perfectly with Chalamet’s rendition of him.
What makes them so special together, instead of just individually, is the usage of actions over words. Specifically, minimal actions. Viewers see the disconnect between the two through reluctant interactions in comparison to them with other characters, which Ronan and Chalamet perfected. While any other combination of actors could’ve played the roles of Lady Bird and Kyle, the communication and chemistry between Ronan and Chalamet can’t be matched, and will only further develop, two years later, in “Little Women.”
“Little Women” is a movie adaptation of the 1868 and 1869 novels by Louisa May Alcott, encompassing a group of four sisters facing struggles of womanhood during the Civil War. While there are different storylines for each sister, two in particular revolve around a boy, Theodore “Laurie” Laurence, played by Chalamet. Laurie spends most of the film pining after the unconventional spinster sister, Jo March, played by Ronan. Jo is a strong-willed feminist who ultimately rejects Laurie; as a result, Laurie goes after her younger sister, Amy March, whom he later marries. Jo eventually regrets her rejection, and before she has the chance to share her feelings, true or not, she learns the news about him and her sister. While this story takes place in the 1800s, both Ronan and Chalamet fit their characters as if it were a modern-day, anti-love story, giving it a new generational twist.
“Little Women” is certainly where the professional connection between Ronan and Chalamet matured, and so did their characters (literally). In a way, they swapped roles, with Chalamet now playing a man seeking out a genuine connection, with Ronan playing a woman unknowingly stringing him along as she tries to make a name for herself. Like in “Lady Bird,” the chemistry between the two isn’t done through loud proclamations, but instead through their timeline. We first find the two escaping a boring ball, bonding over their shared disinterest in modest dances and elegance. After that point, Laurie can’t seem to move on from her, while Jo immediately turns to the art of writing. From this unalignment of feelings, viewers are left to pity both people in different ways.
These two play the trope of “right person, wrong time” to a tee, from the juggling of emotional readiness to the “will they, won’t they” relationship they have throughout the entire movie. Something about Ronan and Chalamet’s priority on nuances engages the viewers into believing and hoping in the love story between the two, which is why it’s so devastating that he ends up “settling” for her younger sister. Simultaneously, it is also questioned if Jo actually loves Laurie the way he loved her, and if Laurie ever truly stopped loving Jo. Ronan and Chalamet take viewers on a whirlwind, making them decipher intentions and the results of the actions that they both take, which likely wouldn’t have happened with another pair.
This isn’t just a personal love, but many others on the internet are clinging to what little media we have of Ronan and Chalamet together. One Letterboxd user in particular is responsible for my realisation of the chemistry between the two. “Everything Soairse and Timothee do together is mesmerising,” user Ciara said. “I want them to be scene partners forever – literally am obsessed with them.” After reading this review, it made me realise that I didn’t necessarily love “Little Women” and “Lady Bird” for their director’s creative ability, which doesn’t negate Gerwig’s talent, but instead for their casting, specifically the combination of Ronan and Chalamet. With these two acting together, either in a relationship you’re hoping they’ll get over or one you’re hoping they’ll officiate, the media is bound to be amazing.
Ronan and Chalamet are well-accomplished actors, with the two films they starred in having various awards and nominations, but, for some unknown reason, Hollywood hasn’t utilised them since 2019. The pair put a heavy emphasis on the development of their relationships through actions and time, rather than prolonged speeches, as many romance stories go, which is what makes them so relatable and desired by viewers. Because of this, it ultimately makes it so much more heartbreaking that they’re limited to the two movies. All in all, based on their performances in “Lady Bird” and “Little Women,” it is clear that Saoirse Ronan and Timothée Chalamet are an unjustly underrated Hollywood pair.
