Timothée Chalamet has the ultimate seal of approval to play Bob Dylan in the upcoming biopic A Complete Unknown — that of Dylan himself!
The folk-rock legend, 83, officially threw his support behind Chalamet, 28, in a post on X (formerly Twitter) Wednesday, Dec. 4, exactly three weeks before the James Mangold-directed movie opens in theaters.
“There’s a movie about me opening soon called A Complete Unknown (what a title!),” Dylan began. “Timothee Chalamet is starring in the lead role. Timmy’s a brilliant actor so I’m sure he’s going to be completely believable as me. Or a younger me. Or some other me.”
The musician continued, “The film’s taken from Elijah Wald’s Dylan Goes Electric – a book that came out in 2015. It’s a fantastic retelling of events from the early ‘60s that led up to the fiasco at Newport. After you’ve seen the movie read the book.”
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There’s a movie about me opening soon called A Complete Unknown (what a title!). Timothee Chalamet is starring in the lead role. Timmy’s a brilliant actor so I’m sure he’s going to be completely believable as me. Or a younger me. Or some other me. The film’s taken from Elijah…
— Bob Dylan (@bobdylan) December 4, 2024
A Complete Unknown follows Dylan’s early life and career as he rose to prominence in the 1960s. In addition to Chalamet, the movie — cowritten by Mangold, 60, and Jay Cocks — also stars Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro, Edward Norton, Boyd Holbrook, Dan Fogler, Norbert Leo Butz, Eriko Hatsune, Big Bill Morgenfield, Scoot McNairy and Will Harrison.
Fanning, 26, recently praised Chalamet’s “extraordinary” performance as Dylan during a spotlight conversation on Tuesday, Dec. 3, held during The Wrap’s 2024 WrapWomen Power Women Summit at the Maybourne Hotel in Beverly Hills, California.
“I remember tearing up” said the actress, who plays Sylvie Russo — a character based on the real-life Suze Rotolo, Dylan’s girlfriend and muse during the early ’60s — in A Complete Unknown, of the first time she hear Chalamet sing as Dylan.
“And so seeing him accomplish this and this character in such a beautiful way [was moving],” added Fanning of Chalamet’s turn as the famed singer-songwriter.
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From L: Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown (2024); Bob Dylan in the late 1960s
Related: Timothée Chalamet Performs Bob Dylan’s ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ in New A Complete Unknown Trailer
Chalamet has already been generating buzz for his performance, with journalist Scott Menzel writing on X that he “delivers the performance of the year” as a young Dylan.
“A true tour-de-force where Chalamet is never seen,” Menzel added. “Chalamet’s performance is not just about the voice and look but rather all of the little nuances and mannerisms that he perfectly brings to his life in his portrayal of Bob Dylan.”
On Monday, Dec. 2, Chalamet received The Gotham Film & Media Institute’s Visionary Tribute honor at this year’s Gotham Awards for his work in A Complete Unknown, alongside Mangold.
“I’m grateful to everyone who poured themselves into this project,” the Oscar nominee said in his acceptance speech, in part. “Getting to study and immerse myself in the world of Bob Dylan has been the greatest education a young artist could receive.”
A Complete Unknown is in theaters Dec. 25.
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