Timothee Chalamet defended by Bob Dylan fans after backlash to ‘soulless’ singing voice in biopic trailer

Timothee Chalamet has come under fire from a handful of music fans after the trailer for Bob Dylan biopic, A Complete Unknown, was released yesterday.

In the promo clip from the movie, Chalamet transforms into the 83-year-old folk-rock icon in his younger years as he arrives in New York in 1961 with his acoustic guitar and empty pockets.

The film takes place over the course of Dylan’s early career, detailing the musician’s then-controversial decision to veer towards electric.

Chalamet transformed not just physically for the role by adopting the singer’s signature hair-do, but vocally as well.

In the A Complete Unknown trailer, Chalamet performs a rendition of Dylan’s A Hard Rain’s a‐Gonna Fall to the audience while playing an acoustic guitar.

Chalamet’s mannerisms and performance in the short clip have received plaudits and even sparked rumours of a potential Oscars victory – but it’s also been on the receiving end of some less-than-impressed verdicts.

In response to movie studio Searchlight’s X account when it shared the trailer for the first time, some took issue with Chalamet’s vocal performance, claiming it was too different from that of Dylan’s.

“I can already tell Timothée Chalamet is not Bob Dylan,” one person hit out before another claimed: “The only thing I see is Chalamet with a strange nose and I hear his true voice, I have doubts whether he practiced vocals and voice at all.”

Meanwhile, a third weighed in: “Timothée Chalamet’s (voice) here is close but so far from Bob Dylan’s. Dylan’s has an edge & energy that Chalamet just fails to capture. Still, looking forward to this movie.”

A fourth similarly critiqued: “Chalamet doesn’t transform well as Bob Dylan. He doesn’t have the voice or the depth to make me believe he is Dylan!”

And a fifth went as far as to claim Chalamet’s rendition lacked “soul” as they stated: “Looks ok. Chalamet looks fine, sounds Dylan-like but without the soul.”

However, complaints were promptly slapped down by Dylan’s fans who rushed to the 28-year-old’s defence by suggesting those mocking Chalamet’s ability weren’t actually familiar with Dylan’s work.

“He sounds almost perfect. Have you ever listened to Bob Dylan before?” one fan fumed at an irked X user.

A second echoed: “Honestly, Timmy Tim’s doing a better job than I expected with the voice. Doesn’t necessarily sound just like Bob but it’s like… pretty close. Certainly way closer than I could get.”

Another hit back: “Inevitable that people who’ve never heard Bob Dylan will slate Chalamet’s singing.”

While a fourth heaped praise on further: “Timothée Chalamet has that Bob Dylan voice locked down pretty good. Impressive.”

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A COMPLETE UNKNOWN pic.twitter.com/lOKME5x1xT

— Timothée Chalamet (@RealChalamet) July 24, 2024

The film is billed for a December release in the US, just in time for awards season.

It’s been directed and helmed by James Mangold, the same man who directed Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line in 2005.