Timothée Chalamet called out for 'manspreading' next to Tina Fey

A few fans are dunking on Timothée Chalamet after his recent appearance at a New York Knicks game.

After Chalamet attended the Knicks versus Atlanta Hawks playoff game at Madison Square Garden on April 28, some social media users called out the Oscar nominee for sitting with his legs wide apart, a practice that's been coined "manspreading."

The "Marty Supreme" actor attended the game with girlfriend Kylie Jenner and was flanked by several other big name fans, including Tracy Morgan, Ben Stiller and Tina Fey, the latter of whom sat next to Chalamet.

His sitting position at the game garnered attention after a Fey fan account on X shared a zoomed-in photo of him and Fey in the crowd.

"timothee chalamet if you don’t stop manspreading on tina fey i swear to god," said the post, which has been viewed more than 7 million times to date.

Is Timothée Chalamet really manspreading?

In the replies, commenters were mixed on calling the actor out.

"Bro sitting like he owns the whole row," one person wrote.

"Give my girl Tina some room Timmy," another said.

Some pointed out the collection of cups below Chalamet's seat.

"He’s gotta make room for his 3 drinks," one user said.

But is Chalamet really guilty of "manspreading?" Other commenters pointed out that more men in the row, including Morgan and Stiller, were sitting in similar positions.

"Where is this energy for Tracy Morgan doing the same thing?" an X user said.

What is manspreading?

According to Merriam-Webster, manspreading is defined as "the act or practice by a man of sitting with the legs spread wide apart (as in a public seating area) in a way that intrudes on the space of others."

The phrase originated as a colloquial term before it was widely popularized and recognized by dictionaries. Oxford University Press added the word to its dictionary in 2015.

An Oxford University Press blog post in 2015 reported that the term had been used as early as 2008, but it rose in popularity in 2014 after New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority launched a poster campaign targeting manspreading.

The "manspreading" charge is the latest incident involving Chalamet sparking public discourse. Earlier this year, he ignited widespread backlash for saying "no one cares" about ballet or opera.

Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. Keep up with her on X @melinakh and Instagram @bymelinakhan.