Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards is looking to take the next step in his acting career.
After starring in the 2022 basketball comedy-drama Hustle, Edwards, 24, pitched Timothée Chalamet on teaming up for a remake of Training Day.
“Whenever you start directing a movie and you need somebody to be your main character, call your boy,” Edwards told the Dune actor at his first Believe That Awards. “It could be a Training Day reboot. Let me be Denzel [Washington] and you be Officer Hoyt.”
Edwards hosted the awards show with longtime friend Nick Maddox on his YouTube channel. Chalamet, 29, was crowned White Boy of the Year at the inaugural ceremony over other nominees Adam Sandler, Mr. Beast, Pat McAfee and Tom Cruise.
He joined the show via video from Budapest, Hungary, where he is filming Dune: Part Three.
In the original Training Day, Washington, 70, stars as LAPD narcotics officer Alonzo Harris alongside Ethan Hawke, who plays officer Jake Hoyt. The film was a hit, with Washington winning the Academy Award for Best Actor in 2002 and a TV series based on the movie airing on CBS in 2017.
If the reboot comes to fruition, Edwards has just one requirement.
“I can’t die in the movie,” he said. “That’s the only thing. I can’t die.”
Though Edwards, the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, plays for Minnesota and Chalamet is a lifelong New York Knicks fan, the two have bonded over their shared love of the game. Chalamet is a mainstay on the sidelines at Madison Square Garden with girlfriend Kylie Jenner.
Edwards tried to recruit him to a game in Minneapolis anyway.
“You know, man, you got to come to a Minnesota game,” he said. “I be seeing you at the New York game with them flag outfits on. You got to bring your flag to Minnesota, man.”
Chalamet wasn’t the only honoree at the Believe That Awards. Noah Lyles, Skip Bayless, Magic Johnson and Charles Barkley were all nominated for Hater of the Year, and all four of them shared the award. Edwards had a particular problem with the TNT analyst Barkley, 62, who chastised ESPN for trying to make Edwards the “face” of the league.
“Don’t try to make Anthony Edwards the face of the NBA, because the face of the NBA is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Joker [Nikola Jokic] and Giannis [Antetokounmpo],” he said in May. “You can’t give it to people. They have to take it. And Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is taking it.”
Barkley also claimed Edwards “regressed” as a three-point shooter despite the three-time All-Star shooting above 40 percent from long distance.
“I had so much respect for you. I still got a lot of respect for you, but it done came down,” Edwards said.
Meanwhile, ESPN’s Shams Charania took home Reporter of the Year honors, WNBA legend Candace Parker earned Woman of the Year and Matilda actress Mara Wilson won the Legacy Award. Edwards’ own Adidas AE1 sneaker won the Sneaker of the Year title over the other four nominees, which were the AE1 listed four additional times.