You remember that feeling of seeing something so weirdly specific on TV that you had to check if you were actually awake? That was basically the entire internet in late 2023 when Timothée Chalamet stepped onto the Saturday Night Live stage. But it wasn't just the wig or the attempt at an Australian accent that broke the timeline. It was the clothes. Specifically, the troye sivan timothee chalamet shirt combo that turned a niche pop culture moment into a viral fashion phenomenon.
If you weren't on TikTok that week, here is the vibe: Chalamet, the guy we usually see in high-fashion McQueen or haunting Dune deserts, was suddenly a "sleep demon" version of Troye Sivan. He was wearing this tiny, ribbed white tank top—the kind of shirt that looks like it might shrink if you even look at it wrong—paired with pants so baggy they could double as a two-person tent.
Why the Internet Obsessed Over the Troye Sivan Timothee Chalamet Shirt
Pop culture is a strange beast. Sometimes a $200 million movie drops and nobody cares. Other times, an Oscar nominee puts on a "blouse" and the world stops spinning. The troye sivan timothee chalamet shirt wasn't just a costume; it was a frame-by-frame recreation of Troye's look from the "Got Me Started" music video.
In that video, Troye is dancing around Bangkok, looking lean and effortless in that exact silhouette. When SNL costume designers put Chalamet in the same gear, they weren't just making a joke. They were tapping into a very specific "twink-chic" aesthetic that Troye has spent years perfecting.
The Anatomy of the Look
Honestly, it’s a simple outfit, but that’s why it worked.
🔗 Read more: Does Emmanuel Macron Have Children? The Real Story of the French President’s Family Life
- The Shirt: A white, ribbed, ultra-cropped tank top. It’s basically the "wife-pleaser" but make it fashion.
- The Pants: Blue striped pajama-style bottoms that sit low on the hips.
- The Reveal: The red underwear peeking out from the top, which became the literal punchline of the sketch.
When Chalamet started doing the hip-thrusting choreography, the shirt became a character of its own. It was a perfect parody of Troye's "moisturized" brand of pop stardom.
Troye Sivan’s Shocked Reaction (and That Instagram Change)
Usually, when a celebrity gets parodied on SNL, they give a polite "haha, so funny" tweet and move on. Not Troye. He went through a full-blown existential crisis—in a fun way. He posted a video of himself watching the sketch in pure shock, captioning it, "WHY IS LIFE SO WEIRDDDDD RN LMAO IM DEAD."
He even changed his Instagram profile picture to Chalamet’s face from the sketch. Think about that for a second. A global pop star was using a photo of a famous actor impersonating him as his digital identity. It was meta-commentary at its peak.
Troye later told reporters that the whole thing felt like a "weird f***ing dream." He mentioned how surreal it was to see Timothée Chalamet—one of the biggest movie stars on the planet—literally wearing his clothes and doing his dance moves. It wasn't just a parody; it was a cultural handshake between the indie-pop world and Hollywood.
💡 You might also like: Judge Dana and Keith Cutler: What Most People Get Wrong About TV’s Favorite Legal Couple
The "Gay Famous" Hierarchy and That Iconic Shirt
One of the funniest lines in the sketch involves Bowen Yang’s doctor character explaining that Troye is "gay famous." He says it’s different from regular famous. While Troye has millions of fans, the SNL sketch served as a "mainstreaming" moment.
The troye sivan timothee chalamet shirt became a symbol of that transition. Suddenly, people who had never heard "Rush" or "Got Me Started" were Googling "who is the guy in the tiny shirt?" It bridged the gap between the queer pop subculture and the general public.
And let’s not forget the boygenius cameo. Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker all showed up in the same tiny shirts and big pants. At that point, the outfit became a uniform for a certain type of internet-savvy coolness. It wasn't just about one person anymore; it was a collective moment of "if you get it, you get it."
Where Can You Actually Get the Look?
The irony is that this "costume" is actually just how Troye Sivan dresses. If you're looking for the troye sivan timothee chalamet shirt, you don't need a Hollywood costume department.
📖 Related: The Billy Bob Tattoo: What Angelina Jolie Taught Us About Inking Your Ex
You can find versions of the ribbed tank at places like Uniqlo, LOS ANGELES APPAREL, or even high-end brands like Jacquemus if you want to be fancy about it. The key is the fit—it has to be slightly too small to capture that specific 2023 Troye energy.
As for the pants, Troye’s original video featured pieces that felt thrifted and lived-in. The SNL version looked like standard striped poplin pajama pants. It’s a look that’s surprisingly easy to replicate for a Halloween costume or just a very bold trip to the grocery store.
Actionable Steps for the "Sivan Aesthetic"
If you’re trying to channel this specific vibe, don't just buy a white tank top and hope for the best.
- Check the Proportion: The secret to the troye sivan timothee chalamet shirt look is the contrast. The top must be tight and cropped, and the pants must be ridiculously oversized. If the pants aren't dragging on the floor slightly, you're doing it wrong.
- The Underwear Detail: If you're going for the full "sleep demon" parody, the red briefs are non-negotiable. It’s the pop of color that makes the whole neutral outfit work.
- Confidence is Key: Both Troye and Timothée sell this look because they don't look embarrassed. It’s a high-commitment outfit.
The SNL sketch might be a few years old now, but the impact of that fashion moment still lingers in the way we talk about celebrity crossovers. It was a rare instance where everyone—the subject, the actor, and the fans—was in on the joke, and we got some iconic memes out of it.
If you're looking to buy fan-made merch, plenty of independent artists on sites like Etsy and Redbubble have turned the "Chalamet as Troye" image into actual graphic tees. So, technically, you can wear a shirt of the shirt. How’s that for meta?