From Willy Wonka to Paul Atreides, Timothée Chalamet has taken on some pretty iconic roles in the past – but his next challenge is set to be one of his biggest yet: the Dune actor is embodying Bob Dylan in the upcoming biopic, A Complete Unknown.

Set in the downtown, NYC music scene of the 1960s, the film features a cast of young actors as now-famous musicians, trying to make it big. Here's everything we know about the project so far...

What is A Complete Unknown about?

According to Deadline, the film – which is currently being shot on location in New Jersey – will follow "19-year-old Minnesota musician Bob Dylan’s meteoric rise as a folk singer to concert halls and the top of the charts — his songs and mystique becoming a worldwide sensation — culminating in his groundbreaking electric rock and roll performance at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965."

The film is directed by James Mangold (the brains behind Walk the Line and Girl, Interrupted) who has suggested that Dylan himself has been instrumental in the plot. "This film has been a dream for almost five years now and I am thrilled to start shooting," Mangold said in a start-of-production statement. "I am also profoundly grateful for the support of Bob Dylan and Jeff Rosen [Dylan's longtime representative] in helping and me and the crew with their recollections, wisdom and access to their incredible archives."

Who is starring in it?

The lead role of Dylan is being taken by Chalamet, who certainly bears an uncanny resemblance to the star. Photographs taken during filming show Chalamet as Dylan being ushered into a 1960s-style car, away from adoring fans asking for the Like a Rolling Stone singer's autograph.

Chalamet is joined in the film by Monica Barbaro and Edward Norton, who play fellow folk singers at the time, Joan Baez and Pete Seeger; Boyd Holbrook (who you might recognise from Narcos) will play legendary musician Johnny Cash. Actress Elle Fanning will also be taking on a prominent role as Sylvie Russo, a thinly veiled version of Suze Rotolo, an artist and Dylan's longtime girlfriend. Photos have already emerged of the two filming in New Jersey, joking around on set.

Rotolo was a huge influence on Dylan's music; it was not until they met that Dylan's writing began to address issues such as the civil rights movement and the threat of nuclear war, for example. She went on to write a book – A Freewheelin' Time: A Memoir of Greenwich Village in the Sixties – in which she described her time with Dylan and other figures in the folk music and bohemian scene in Greenwich Village.

When will A Complete Unknown be released?

Filming was supposed to start last year, but was postponed in July due to the SAG-AFTRA strike. Filming eventually began on 16 March 2024, so we shouldn't expect to see the film released in cinemas for a while. One thing's for certain: we'll be booking our tickets as soon as we know more...