Timothée Chalamet will play Bob Dylan in a new biopic

It's been talked about for a few years, but now the news is official: Timothée Chalamet will play the role of Bob Dylan in the film. The project for a biopic about the "minstrel from Duluth", first rumoured in 2020, seemed to be on hold due to the pandemic and the projects that kept handsome Timmy busy in other locations, from the second part of Denis Villeneuve's Dune saga to Paul King's Wonka. The prequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in particular, in which he makes no less than seven musical appearances that required meticulous preparation on the vocal front, seems to have been the perfect training for the role of Dylan, as the actor will lend not only his face but also his voice to the iconic singer. Following the example of Taron Egerton in Rocketman and Austin Butler in Elvis, Chalamet will showcase his eclectic talent by singing in the songs we will hear in the biopic. The confirmation came directly from James Mangold, the film's director, at the Star Wars Celebration in London, where he was busy promoting Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. He explained that the great artist's songs will be sung by Timothée himself.

The project, which has the working title A Complete Unknown, is still shrouded in mystery, but Mangold let slip that the plot will paint a picture of America at the time, with the charismatic and enigmatic figure of Bob Dylan at its centre:

«It’s such an amazing time in American culture and the story of a young, 19-year-old Bob Dylan coming to New York with, like, two dollars in his pocket and becoming a worldwide sensation within three years — first being embraced into the family of folk music in New York and then, of course, kind of outrunning them at a certain point as his star rises so beyond belief. It’s such an interesting true story at about such an interesting moment in the American scene, different characters from Woody Guthrie to Bob Dylan, to Pete Seeger to Joan Baez, all have a role to play in this movie.»

According to Deadline, the film is also likely to include the famous episode at the Newport Folk Festival on 25 July 1965, when Dylan, until then considered a "prophet of acoustic music"," appeared on stage with an electric guitar, switching from folk to electric rock and drawing the ire of fans who branded him a "traitor".

Filming on A Complete Unknown is due to begin next August and the film is expected to be released in 2024. In the meantime, it is known that Timothée is already getting to grips with the acoustic and electric guitar. We have no doubt that his acting and musical performance will be outstanding and could perhaps earn him an Oscar, as with other of his colleagues who have played musical icons.