Everyone already knew Timothée Chalamet was a terrific actor (and Gen Z heartthrob). Still, in the lead-up to his new movie Marty Supreme, he’s proven to be a supreme marketer as well.
From the wild, viral Zoom brainstorm and ping pong ball-headed security guards at an NYC pop-up, to the ubiquitous Marty Supreme jacket adorned by the likes of Tom Brady, Frank Ocean and the Jenner sisters, this rollout exemplifies a new direction in marketing: Talent not only shapes the message, but also influences how audiences engage with it.
Chalamet is doing far more than just promoting a movie; he is leaving his creative fingerprint on the campaign. This marks a clear cultural shift — personality, humor and internet fluency outpace the polish of traditional marketing. The most compelling campaigns today come from talent who understand how culture behaves online, and Chalamet is a native speaker.
For those with their ears to the ground, this comes as no surprise. The staggering growth of the creator economy has been a clear and resonant signal. As marketers, we know that authenticity begets attention. According to a study by Morning Consult, a majority of Gen Z values authenticity over perfect branding, confirming what social-first brands have felt intuitively for years: Trust is now built through truth, not presentation. To further emphasize why truth is important, TikTok’s algorithm routinely favors lo-fi, personality-forward content over highly produced cinema.
That’s partly why Marty Supreme’s marketing has succeeded. It leans into playing (or meme-ing) rather than performing, resulting in content that feels collaborative, chaotic and human. This mirrors the participatory nature of social platforms, where audiences expect proximity to the creative process.
Chalamet brings to the campaign what traditional promotions cannot: a narrative identity that serves as a story engine. The meme-driven format feels natural because consumers are already familiar with Chalamet’s quirky, charming personality. The promotions tap into how audiences engage online, sparking more discourse than a studio-produced asset could. Most importantly, the campaign trusts the talent to lead, distinguishing good content from culturally relevant content.
Although Marty Supreme’s impact partially relies on Chalamet’s cultural cachet, his creative direction offers insights that extend beyond this campaign.
This strategy has also worked well for Stranger Things, which has repeatedly leaned into behind-the-scenes and personality-forward social content that sparks significant organic engagement, often driving more conversation online than official studio trailers, according to entertainment and marketing coverage. The actors serve as quasi-influencers, all having gigantic personal social media followings strategically tapped into by Netflix.
Similarly, the Barbie PR tour saw some of its strongest social buzz when Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling embraced playful, persona-driven moments on TikTok and at global press stops, which media outlets widely credited for amplifying the film’s cultural presence. Both franchises demonstrate a clear pattern: Audiences respond more enthusiastically to talent-led, personality-rich content than traditional promotional assets.
These campaigns show that authentic, personality-driven content outperforms polished, brand-first assets. Allowing talent to shape the narrative drives higher watch time and engagement. When creators direct their campaigns, audiences reward authenticity with attention. This strategy favors alignment over control.
Meanwhile, traditional campaigns relying on rigid creative, controlled messaging and standard tactics such as trailers, interviews and press junkets are losing effectiveness. The new model, demonstrated by Marty Supreme, is fluid, experimental and personality-driven. The industry must view talent as creative collaborators, not just executors. Budgets should shift toward social-first, personality-led content for campaigns that spark conversation, not follow a static plan. This is a recalibration of modern influence.
The Marty Supreme rollout is not an outlier; it should serve as a blueprint. Personality wins over polish, memeability surpasses curated messaging and authenticity is more valuable than a set amount of assets. Talent-led campaigns give audiences what they want in a crowded field: entertainment, humanity and connection. Marketing professionals who embrace this strategy will win in the attention economy, while those who cling to old playbooks risk irrelevance. In a landscape of endless content, campaigns that feel alive are the ones that break through.
Quinn Gawronski is the head of content and creators at Props.
