Bob Dylan gave notes to James Mangold for film about folk legend’s life starring Timothée Chalamet

By Alli Rosenbloom, CNN

(CNN) — Bob Dylan, folk music legend and prolific songwriter, had some (probably very well written) notes for director James Mangold on the script for the filmmaker’s new movie about Dylan, “A Complete Unknown.”

Mangold appeared on a recent episode of the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast, and shared that the film, starring Timothée Chalamet as Dylan, has the full support from the music icon.

“I’ve spent several wonderfully charming days in his company, just one-on-one, talking to him,” Mangold said, adding, “I have a script that’s personally annotated by him and treasured by me. He loves movies.”

The “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” director also took the opportunity to clarify that the movie shouldn’t be considered a “Bob Dylan biopic.” He said that “Bob has been so supportive of us making it” because the film is focused on a specific point in time in his life as opposed to covering his overarching life story.

“It’s a kind of an ensemble piece about this moment in time, the early ’60s in New York, and this 17-year-old kid with $16 in his pockets hitchhikes his way to New York to meet Woody Guthrie who is in the hospital,” Mangold explained, in part.

The film was announced in 2020 and is set to begin filming next month, Mangold said in April. Mangold also confirmed that the “Dune” star will be doing his own singing in the movie.

Monica Barbaro will star alongside Chalamet as Joan Baez, with Benedict Cumberbatch playing folk singer Pete Seeger and Elle Fanning as romantic interest Sylvie Russo rounding out the cast.

Dylan serves as an executive producer on the film. A release date has not yet been announced.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.