Lauren Sellman, Arts & Entertainment Editor
Jaipreet Hundal, the winner of the Dev Patel lookalike contest in San Francisco on November 10, 2024. Photo//Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle
One successful event has sparked a global trend of celebrity look-alike contests in recent weeks.
Timothée Chalamet
On October 27, 2024, hundreds of Timothée Chalamet-looking fans flooded New York City for a lookalike contest with a grand prize of $50. Despite the actor making a surprise appearance at the event, a college student from Staten Island was crowned the winner for being the most Timothée, Timothée in attendance. The 21-year-old winner wore a full Willy Wonka costume and carried a time-appropriate trunk to sell the look.
Through the excitement, one lookalike was unfortunately arrested, which arose from police attempting to contain the massive scene. The competition was organized by rising YouTuber Anthony Po, a content creator with an online reach of over a million subscribers.
Paul Mescal
After the successful chaos of the initial competition, fans organized a Paul Mescal lookalike competition in Dublin, Ireland on November 7, 2024. Most recently known for his role in the 2020 series Normal People, lookalikes of the actor gathered for a chance to win long-term bragging rights. The contest took place near the Light House cinema where the premier of Mescal’s newest movie, Gladiator II would be showing later that night. The contest winner took home a giant check equivalent to either €20 or “three pints”.
Harry Styles
Another successor took place on November 9, when around 500 people gathered in London for a Harry Styles lookalike competition. The contest was planned by a journalist inspired to one-up New York and Dublin and bring positivity to the city. The event became a celebration of the singer's nontraditional fashion sense, with the winner receiving £50, and the loser receiving a 4-pack of beer for the effort.
According to attendees, without these famous actors' distinctive styles, the contests may as well have simply been a gathering of like-minded individuals rather than lookalikes.
Dev Patel
Most recently on November 10, 2024, there was a major turnout for a Dev Patel lookalike contest in San Francisco, California with over 500 RSVPs before the event. Patel is known for his role in Slumdog Millionaire (2008) as well as his newest role in Monkey Man (2024). The contest was hosted casually by three friends inspired by the Timothée Chalamet competition. Although the star unfortunately didn’t make an appearance, fans seem to have enjoyed their time anyway, with Devs often seen dancing and cheering, dressed as characters from iconic movie scenes.
These gatherings are a chance for communities to show their support for their country's most iconic celebrities in a positive and competitive way. Hopefully, these contests continue in upcoming months as they bring people together and emphasize the importance of lightheartedness and togetherness.
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