How many roads must a man walk down to play Bob Dylan?

Quite a few, at least, if you're Timothée Chalamet. Off and on for some six years, Chalamet has been obsessively working toward his performance in "A Complete Unknown." He has visited Dylan's childhood home, learned how to play the guitar (and the harmonica) and immersed himself in the early '60s New York that Dylan emerged out of — even if much of it has faded with history by now.

"Cafe Wha? was funny because they have Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan painted along the staircase and everything but now it's just, like, Aerosmith covers," Chalamet says, chuckling. "I was like: I don't think this is what it was like when Bob was here."

Chalamet has been building his Bob Dylan for so long that he's been seen playing Dylan songs while in costume as Willy Wonka and on the set of "Dune." His "Dune" co-star, Oscar Isaac (who famously played a fictional Dylan-adjacent folk musician in "Inside Llewyn Davis"), said, "My first thought, it sounded like a really bad idea."

Isaac certainly wasn't the only one to doubt whether Chalamet, or anyone, could tackle someone as iconic and enigmatic as Dylan. But Chalamet's performance — complete with singing and guitar playing — in the James Mangold-directed film, which opens in theaters Dec. 25, has drawn near-universal praise. Chalamet has been nominated for a Golden Globe; if he were to be nominated and win at the Academy Awards, the 28-year-old would be the youngest best actor winner ever.

Even Dylan, who gave Mangold notes on the film, has said: "Timmy's a brilliant actor so I'm sure he's going to be completely believable as me. Or a younger me. Or some other me."

The Dylan in question in "A Complete Unknown," loosely based on Elijah... Read More