The highly anticipated Bob Dylan biopic, A Complete Unknown, directed by James Mangold and starring Timothée Chalamet as the legendary musician, is set to hit theatres on December 25.
The film will premiere on the same day as Robert Eggers’ remake of Nosferatu and a week after Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King.
A Complete Unknown chronicles Dylan’s early life and times, starting with his arrival in Greenwich Village in the early 1960s as a 19-year-old from Minnesota, which sparks an “upheaval in the folk community” when he switches to an electric guitar in 1965.
The first trailer, released in July, showcases Chalamet (who does his singing) performing a powerful version of A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall and visiting iconic locations like Cafe Wha? and Hotel Chelsea.
The screenplay for A Complete Unknown was adapted by James Mangold and Jay Cocks from Elijah Wald’s 2015 book Dylan Goes Electric. The film’s title is inspired by Bob Dylan’s iconic song Like a Rolling Stone.
Although Dylan, now 83, is not directly involved in the project, he did provide feedback on the script and met with Mangold on multiple occasions to offer his insights.
“I’ve spent several, wonderfully charming, days in his company, just one-on-one, talking to him,” Mangold said earlier this summer. “I have a script that’s personally annotated by him and treasured by me.”
The upcoming biopic boasts an ensemble cast, including Edward Norton as Pete Seeger, Elle Fanning as Sylvie Russo, Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez, Boyd Holbrook as Johnny Cash, Dan Fogler as Albert Grossman, and Scoot McNairy as Woody Guthrie.
The film is produced by Searchlight Pictures, with Chalamet and James Mangold serving as producers alongside Fred Berger, Alex Heineman, Peter Jaysen, Bob Bookman, Alan Gasmer, and Jeff Rosen.
