Timothée Chalamet Says Preparing to Play Bob Dylan for 5 Years Was His 'Eternal Focus'

Timothée Chalamet immersed himself deeply into the role of Bob Dylan for his upcoming biopic, A Complete Unknown.

The film, set for a Christmas Day release, focuses on Dylan’s younger years and captures his rise from folk music star to rock icon. However, the film itself faced a few bumps on the road on its journey to the big screen.

According to Deadline , Chalamet, now 28, was originally cast in 2020 to play Dylan, 83, before production was indefinitely delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic that year.

Although the film’s director, James Mangold, told Collider last April the principal photography would begin in Aug. 2023, the SAG/AFTRA strike last July postponed the film for a second time. A Complete Unknown finally began production in March .

In a new interview, Chalamet told Rolling Stone ’s Brian Hiatt that he hardly knew anything about Dylan and wound up becoming a “devoted disciple in the Church of Bob.” The actor, who sang live for the film, took many steps to embody the essence of Dylan.

“I had to push the preparation, the bounds—almost to psychologically know I had pushed it,” Chalamet told the magazine, adding that he worked with a vocal coach, a movement coach, took guitar lessons, and learned how to play the harmonica.

“It was something I would go to sleep panicked about,” he said. “Losing a moment of discovery as the character — no matter how pretentious that sounds — because I was on my phone or because of any distraction. I had three months of my life to play Bob Dylan, after five years of preparing to play him. So while I was in it, that was my eternal focus. He deserved that and then more.”

“God forbid I missed a step because I was being Timmy. I could be Timmy for the rest of my life!” the Academy Award nominee added.

A Complete Unknown sees Chalamet co-starring with Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro, and Edward Norton and will hit theaters on Dec. 25.