What Makes a Man of the Year? Inside GQ’s Big Night Out at the Chateau Marmont

I pulled up to Chateau Marmont at 10 p.m. sharp, where hordes of photographers had congregated outside. Flashes were going off in rapid succession as I slipped out of my Uber in a pair of Marc Jacobs bow heels from the early 2010s with a giant smile on my face when not a single camera turned my way. I guess they don’t know good footwear when they see it. 

I was there to cover GQ’s Men of the Year party—not to be confused with People’s Sexiest Man Alive, although I imagine there is some overlap in the tip sheets. This year, GQ was honoring not one man but five: Chris Rock, Andrew Garfield, Matt Damon, Celine’s Michael Rider, and legendary director Denis Villeneuve. Combine that with the guest list—Jason Bateman, Joshua Jackson, Travis Scott, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Miguel, Diplo, and Jordan Firstman to name a few—and it was quite the gathering of testosterone under one roof.

Chateau Marmont, the grande dame of Old Hollywood that has managed to retain its mystique, is arguably the sexiest spot in Los Angeles. In 1929, when Hollywood was booming and the surrounding hillsides were beginning to sprout mansions, the stretch of Sunset Boulevard where the Chateau now stands was still something of a frontier. Originally conceived as a luxury apartment building loosely modeled after a Gothic castle in France, nearly a century and some recessions later, it has remained the go-to stomping ground for generations of actors, artists, musicians, and troublemakers. And this night was no different.

The fire-engine red carpet and step-and-repeat had been set up in the Chateau’s garage, and the lighting had raised the temperature by what felt like ten degrees (I was already sweating through my velvet jacket, so I’m not sure how those in tuxes and heavy outerwear were faring). Zosia Mamet, who played Shoshanna on Girls, was walking down the carpet while I ran into a few familiar faces, including my good friend Noah Dillon and his musical partner Chandler Lucy from The Hellp. They’re playing Coachella for the first time this year, so we got to talking about that when a little commotion on the carpet caught my eye. A model had handed her coat to a publicist, when several items, including some party favors, came tumbling out of the pockets. Not exactly the sort of thing one hopes for while strutting down a red carpet. As someone scrambled to retrieve them, I took that as my cue to head toward the main event. I had, after all, come here to work.

As we made our way up the stairs and into the party, servers were stationed along both walls, balancing espresso martinis on silver platters. I spotted Jimmy Kimmel, whom I always confuse with one of the other late-night Jimmys. Emma Watson was there, too, and artist Lauren Halsey in the distance. Another man of the hour, Adam Baidawi, hosting the event for the first time since becoming the publication’s global editorial director in February, was also holding court.

Outside on the patio, I clocked Villeneuve with his wife at the bar, looking rather inconspicuous for a man responsible for some of the most spectacular films of the past decade. That’s when a strange young man with eager eyes approached him and asked to pull him aside. I watched the entire exchange unfold. “I just have to tell you, I saw Blade Runner 2049 seven times while high on mushrooms,” he shared. Villeneuve burst out laughing and replied that that’s the optimal way to see it, as the fan proceeded to tell him that “the best sequel ever made” had changed his life.

I can only imagine how gratifying it must be for a filmmaker to discover that someone has watched their film seven times. Hell, I get excited when someone tells me they’ve read one of my pieces even once. There are probably fewer filmmakers who get to hear that all seven viewings involved mushrooms. I wondered whether this was the sort of feedback Villeneuve received regularly or whether I’d just witnessed an especially enthusiastic member of his audience.

At one of the outdoor patio tables, Garfield was sitting with his girlfriend, Monica Barbaro, and chatting with friends. While I scanned the area for Damon and Rock, I ran into Anderson .Paak, and after bumping into each other three times in the space of two weeks, we decided we may as well have a proper conversation. I asked him, “What makes a man of the year?” “A man of confidence, a leader, a listener, and a doer,” he fired back quickly. It was a good answer, and more thoughtful than anything I had prepared for the question.

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