Timothée Chalamet stays busy in 2023, with Denis Villenueve‘s “Dune: Part Two” and Paul King‘s “Wonka” in theaters later this year. But what about after that? Well, he and James Mangold team up for a Bob Dylan biopic, and according to the director, Chalamet will do his own singing as the legendary folk musician.
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EW reports (via Collider) that Mangold confirmed at the Star Wars Celebration this past weekend that Chalamet will use his voice as Dylan in the upcoming movie. The film starts production in August. “It’s such an amazing time in American culture,” Mangold said about his take on Dylan’s story. The biopic follows “a young, 19-year-old Bob Dylan coming to New York with two dollars in his pocket and becoming a worldwide sensation within three years.”
The film charts Dylan’s rise to stardom amid the Greenwich Village folk scene and then focus on his career in 1965 when he began to transition to a more rock ‘n roll sound. Mangold said his film stars with Dylan “being embraced into the family of folk music in New York and then, of course, kind of outrunning them at a certain point as his star rises so beyond belief. It’s such an interesting true story and about such an interesting moment in the American scene. Different characters from Woody Guthrie to Bob Dylan to Peter Seeger to Joan Baez — they all have a role to play in this movie.”
But will Chamalet do justice to Bob Dylan’s iconic voice? For those worried, look to the actor’s earlier films for reference of his musical ability. He plays piano and guitar in Luca Guadagnino‘s 2017 film “Call Me By Your Name.” He also sings and plays a rendition of Chet Baker‘s “Everything Happens To Me” in Woody Allen‘s 2019 film “A Rainy Day In New York.” King’s “Wonka” is also a musical of sorts, with Chalamet doing song and dance for up to seven numbers in the upcoming film. So, yes, young Mr. Chalamet has the ability to sing like Bob Dylan. But will he actually pull it off? That’s another question.
In any case, Mangold and Chalamet start filming their Dylan biopic in August. After that, Mangold has his “Star Wars” movie “Dawn Of The Jedi” and his “Swamp Thing” script for DC Studios, which someone else may direct. So, a busy next several years for Mr. Mangold.