Timothée Chalamet Says Netflix Wants the ‘Biggest Action Set Pieces Up Front’ as Matthew McConaughey Mourns the Loss of Act One in Movies: ‘The First Thing That Gets Cut’

In bonus footage from “A celebrity.land & Variety Town Hall Event: Timothée Chalamet and Matthew McConaughey,” the two actors discussed how studios have begun catering to people who are using their phones while watching movies or TV shows.

“In this day of shorter attention spans and vertical 12-second spots, are we losing the patience for Act 1?” McConaughey said. “Because it’s the first thing that gets cut. It’s the first thing a studio wants to get rid of. I’m seeing Act 2, more and more, start on freakin’ page 12 [of a script]. I’m seeing 10-part series where — bam! — Act 1’s over 32 minutes into the opening episode, and you’re off on the conflict right away. It feels abbreviated to me.”

Chalamet responded, “I saw an article about a Netflix production guideline — not for all movies, I don’t want to speak disparagingly, but — where they want their biggest action set pieces up front.