Elle Fanning Says She 'Teared Up' Watching Timothée Chalamet Sing as Bob Dylan for First Time in A Complete Unknown

• Elle Fanning said she remembers being “torn up” hearing friend Timothée Chalamet sing like Bob Dylan for the first time while filming Complete unknown
• The actress was joined by sister Dakota Fanning during the discussion, held during the Power Women Summit in Beverly Hills, California on Tuesday, December 3.
• Elle stars as Sylvie Russo — a character based on the real-life Suze Rotolo, Dylan’s girlfriend and muse during the early 1960s — in Complete unknown

Elle Fanning was moved to tears to see Timothée Chalamet sing like Bob Dylan for the first time on the set of their upcoming film Complete unknown.

The 26-year-old actress was joined by older sister Dakota Fanning for a spotlight conversation on Tuesday, Dec. 3, during Wrap’s WrapWomen Power Women Summit 2024 at the Maybourne Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, where she opened up about seeing her friend portray Dylan .

“Timothée is so amazing in the movie,” Elle said, recalling her first day on set, “I was an audience member and he was singing ‘A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall.’ But he came out and actually gave us a full concert, like Bob Dylan.”

“I remember crying… he is my friend [and we’ve] worked together before,” she continued, possibly referring to their co-starring in the 2019 Woody Allen film. A rainy day in New York.

“And so to see him realize this and this character in such a wonderful way [was moving]” added Elle, who plays Sylvie Russo — a character based on the real-life Suze Rotolo, Dylan’s girlfriend and muse during the early 1960s — in Complete unknown.

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Elle Fanning as Sylvie Russo and Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan in Complete unknown (2024).

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Timothée Chalamet ‘Gives the Performance of the Year’ as Bob Dylan in the Complete unknown: Read what the critics are saying

Elle also noted that Chalamet, 28, doesn’t perform like a “Bob Dylan caricature” — which is saying something, considering she’s “a really big Bob Dylan fan, and I have been for a long time.”

“I really was. I wasn’t allowed to have posters on the wall because of the wallpaper in the room, but I had a cork board and it was all Bob Dylan,” she explained. “And so, I was a harsh critic. I was like, ‘What’s Timmy going to do?’ And he just blew me away… it’s a real combination of him and Bob.”

Complete unknown features Chalamet as a young Dylan, now 83, at the start of his professional music career, and covers the iconic folk rocker’s groundbreaking impact in the ’60s.

In addition to Chalamet and Fanning, the film also stars Monica Barbaro, Edward Norton, Boyd Holbrook, Dan Fogler, Norbert Leo Butz, Eriko Hatsune, Big Bill Morgenfield, Scoot McNairy and Will Harrison. The film was directed by James Mangold (Walk the line) who co-wrote the screenplay with Jay Cocks.

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From L: Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan in Complete unknown (2024); Bob Dylan in the late 1960s.

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Oscar Isaac thought Timothée Chalamet playing Bob Dylan was a ‘really bad idea’ until he heard the actor sing

On Monday, December 2, Chalamet received The Gotham Film & Media Institute Visionary Tribute at this year’s Gotham Awards for his work in Complete unknownwith Mangold, 60.

“I promised myself I would keep it short and sweet because Bob Dylan was a man of few words,” began Chalamet, who thanked his collaborators in his speech. “I look over here and I see a lot of people who have helped shape the man I’m becoming, the artist I’m becoming, all sitting right here.”

“I’m grateful to everyone who gave themselves to this project,” continued the Oscar nominee. “Studying and being immersed in the world of Bob Dylan was the greatest education a young artist can receive.”

“If you’re already a fan of Bob Dylan, this will make perfect sense. And if you’re not familiar with his work, perhaps our film can serve as a modest gateway to one of the great poets and chroniclers of our time,” Chalamet added.

Complete unknown it’s in theaters on December 25.

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