Tangled Up in Blue Pencil: Bob Dylan Had Thoughts on ‘A Complete Unknown’

Bob Dylan had opinions about A Complete Unknown, the upcoming biopic in which Timothée Chalamet will portray the gravel-throated artist and sing his songs. “I’ve spent several, wonderfully charming days in his company, just one-on-one, talking to [Dylan],” filmmaker James Mangold, who helmed the picture, recently told the Happy Sad Confused podcast (via IndieWire). “I have a script that’s personally annotated by him and treasured by me. He loves movies. The first time I sat down with Bob, one of the first things he said to me was, ‘I love Cop Land.’” (Mangold directed 1997’s Cop Land, which starred Sylvester Stallone, Harvey Keitel, and Ray Liotta.)

In the interview, Mangold said he believed the reason Dylan has supported A Complete Unknown is because “it’s not really a Bob Dylan biopic.” The picture traces the artist’s journey from Minnesota to New York to meet Woody Guthrie through his memorable 1965 performance at the Newport Folk Festival when he plugged in an electric guitar to the dismay of folk fans. “The reason Bob has been so supportive of us making it, is …  as in all cases I think of the best true-life movies are never cradle to grave but they’re about a very specific moment,” Mangold said, who describes the picture as being more of an ensemble piece rather than about only Dylan.

“[Dylan] sings Woody a song that he wrote for him and befriends Pete Seeger, who is like a son to Woody, and Pete sets him up with gigs at local clubs and there you meet Joan Baez and all these other people who are part of this world,” Mangold said. “And this wanderer who comes in from Minnesota with a fresh name and a fresh outlook on life, becomes a star, signs to the biggest record company in the world within a year, and three years later, has record sales rivaling the Beatles.”

In addition to Chalamet, the cast includes Benedict Cumberbatch as Seeger, Elle Fanning as Sylvia Russo, and Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez. Dylan is one of the movie’s executive producers.

Mangold, whose Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is in theaters now, has previously said, “of course” Chalamet will sing, according to IndieWire. Production on the picture is set to begin this summer.