EXCLUSIVE: Searchlight Pictures has closed a deal with Ford v Ferrari helmer James Mangold to direct Timothée Chalamet as the young Bob Dylan, during the period when he was poised to become folk music’s most seminal figure. When Dylan instead embraced rock ‘n’ roll and traded his acoustic guitar for an amp and an electric guitar, it created a huge outcry. And it cemented the status of rock music. Dylan is working actively with Searchlight and Mangold on the film, which the studio said is untitled but has been referred to around town as Going Electric.

Negotiations are underway with Chalamet, who has gotten strong reviews for Little Women, and who next will make his London stage debut opposite Eileen Atkins in 4,000 Miles, the Old Vic production of Amy Herzog’s Pulitzer-nominated drama. The play bows April 16 and closes May 23. It is expected he will do Going Electric after that. Chalamet this has the Wes Anderson-directed The French Dispatch coming from Fox Searchlight this year, though no release date has yet been firmed. He closes the year starring in the Denis Villenueve-directed adaptation of the seminal sci-fi Frank Herbert novel Dune, which Warner Bros and Legendary release December 18.

I am not sure if he will sing Dylan’s great songs, but I’ve heard that Chalamet already is taking guitar lessons so he can familiarize himself with the acoustic and electric guitar.

Mangold, whose Ford v Ferrari has crossed the $100 million domestic gross mark and $200 million worldwide for a film that has gotten uniformly strong reviews, will be doing his second film about an iconic musician after the 2005 Johnny Cash-June Carter film Walk the Line. He has done a rewrite on a script written by Jay Cocks (Gangs of New York). Searchlight acquired the project after it was turned loose by HBO following the regime change there, with Chalamet quietly attaching at that time. The movie includes the book Dylan Goes Electric by Elijah Wald.

The film will be produced by Dylan’s longtime manager Jeff Rosen, Veritas Entertainment Group’s Bob Bookman, Alan Gasmer and Peter Jaysen, Automatik’s Fred Berger, The Picture Company’s Alex Heineman and Mangold. Dylan will be exec producer along with Brian Kavanaugh-Jones and Andrew Rona. Dylan’s music rights are part of the package.

Dylan was hailed as an acoustic prophet at age 19 when he exploded on the folk scene and seemed poised to follow in the footsteps of giants like Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger. So when he plugged in his guitar at the 50th anniversary of the Newport Folk Festival on July 25, 1965, the eruption was profound. Some folk purists labeled Dylan a traitor, and there were even attempts to unplug his amp — emblematic of the discord between folk and the growing power of rock music. Others appreciated the evolution of the artist whose place in electrified rock was cemented by hits that included “Like a Rolling Stone.” The drama revolves around Dylan and his interaction with ’60s music legends including Joan Baez, Seeger and everyone who was around during that time.

WME and Management 360 rep Mangold and Chalamet is repped by UTA.

Timothée Chalamet’s Bob Dylan movie “Going Electric” is not dead, despite rumors of the contrary that often float around social media. It’s been almost three years since the project was first announced in early 2020 with “Ford v Ferrari” and “Walk the Line” filmmaker James Mangold attached. The director moved on to direct “Indiana Jones 5” as the Bob Dylan project started and stopped throughout the pandemic. Chalamet told Variety as part of his “Bones and All” cover story that “Going Electric” is heading in a “positive direction.”

“I haven’t stopped preparing, which has been one of the greatest gifts for me,” Chalamet said. “It’s been a wonderful experience getting to dive into that world, whether we get to make it or not. But without giving anything away — because I don’t want to beat anyone to the punch, and obviously things have to come together officially — the winds that are blowing are blowing in a very positive direction.”

Chalamet would say nothing more about the fate of “Going Electric,” but he implied it’s far from dead. Before Chalamet gets the potential chance to flex his Bob Dylan vocals, he’ll first show the world his singing voice as Willy Wonka in Warner Bros.’ upcoming “Wonka” musical. Chalamet has at least seven musical numbers in the film.

“That was something I was very excited to jump into right away,” Chalamet said, adding that “Paddington” director Paul King “built a literal dance studio in one of the lots at Leavesden in London at Warner Bros.” to help him train.

During the pandemic in fall 2020, Chalamet escaped his hometown of New York City and stayed at an Airbnb in Woodstock to get closer to Dylan’s orbit.

“It’s not like I’m suffering from lack of connection otherwise,” Chalamet told GQ magazine at the time, “but it just really feels like I’m connecting to something here.”

If “Going Electric” does go into production, it won’t be until next year at the earliest. Chalamet is currently balancing “Dune: Part 2” filming with his “Bones and All” press tour.

Monica Barbaro, who was part of Tom Cruise’s flight team in Top Gun: Maverick, is in final negotiations to join Timothée Chalamet in Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown.

James Mangold is directing the drama for Searchlight Pictures, with production to begin this summer in New York.

With a script by Jay Cocks (Gangs of New York) and Mangold, Unknown focuses on a transformative moment of Dylan, the legendary singer-songwriter who made his mark during the civil rights and counter-culture upheaval of the 1960s.

Set at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965, the story sees a young Dylan, played by Chalamet, shaking up his act on the folk music scene by going electric and giving the rise of rock as the voice of a generation. The move divided his fans and the music scene and set him on the path to record some of this greatest albums and songs.

Barbabo will portray Joan Baez, the folk singer and activist who performed “Blowin’ in the Wind” at the music festival.

EXCLUSIVE: Elle Fanning (The Great) is set to star alongside Timothée Chalamet and Monica Barbaro in A Complete Unknown, the Bob Dylan biopic that two-time Oscar nominee James Mangold is directing for Searchlight Pictures.

The film heading into production in New York this summer watches as a young Dylan (Chalamet) shakes up the music world in 1965, as he pivots to performing with an electric guitar for the first time. Fanning will play the role of Dylan’s early ’60s love interest, university student and artist Sylvie Russo.

EXCLUSIVE: With Benedict Cumberbatch departing Searchlight Pictures and James Mangold‘s Bob Dylan movie A Complete Unknown following scheduling issues, his replacement has been found, with Edward Norton tapped to play Pete Seeger. He now joins an ensemble that features Timothée Chalamet as Dylan and Elle Fanning on board to play Sylvie Russo. Mangold will direct.

The film is heading into production in New York this summer and centers on a young Dylan (Chalamet) who shakes up the music world in 1965 when he pivots to performing with an electric guitar for the first time. Fanning will play the role of Dylan’s early-’60s love interest, a university student and artist.