Director of A Complete Unknown denies Bob Dylan requested a fake scene be added

James Mangold, the manager of A Complete Unknown, has said claims that vocalist Bob Dylan wanted a fake country added to the biopic are axenic “fiction” which stem from a misunderstanding successful an interview.

Before the movie starring Timothee Chalamet was released successful UK cinemas, US histrion Edward Norton – who plays people vocalist Pete Seeger – said successful an interrogation with Rolling Stone mag that Dylan, who approved the script, had wanted 1 prevarication added to the screenplay.

After this was taken to mean an inaccurate country had been included, Mangold told the PA quality bureau it was “not a existent story”.

He said Dylan “never asked for immoderate fictional country to beryllium stuck successful the movie”, adding: “Edward Norton, successful an aboriginal interview, said that Bob asked for 1 untrue happening enactment in, but it was simply helium wanted to alteration the sanction of his woman from (real-life artist) Suze (Rotolo) to the quality Sylvie Russo, (played by Elle Fanning), that was it.

“But anyone tin disbelieve maine and hunt astir for immoderate fabrication they deliberation meets the criteria of the story.”

A Complete Unknown has been nominated for 8 Oscars and six Baftas, with champion histrion nods for Chalamet, champion supporting histrion for Norton, and adapted screenplay for Mangold and Jay Cocks.

Mangold besides said that portraying Dylan successful the movie arsenic being untruthful astir his inheritance was “complicated” due to the fact that the singer-songwriter was lone 19 “when helium was telling these archetypal stories astir his beingness retired connected the rails oregon moving for a carnival oregon a circus”.

He said a teen could not cognize helium was “about to go a worldwide sensation successful 24 months” and those stories would beryllium “examined nether the microscope of a immense media apparatus”.

“It seems astir the number-one request we inquire of (music stars) is that they someway look calved onto a signifier with a benignant of miraculous communicative of destiny,” Mangold added.

If everyone successful your beingness has an agenda, it lone makes consciousness that you commencement to separate, oregon get aloof, oregon disconnect, oregon compartmentalise successful immoderate mode that you tin inactive relation amid each that pressure

James Mangold connected Bob Dylan's pressures

He besides said helium does not “necessarily agree” that Dylan comes disconnected arsenic a “brat” successful Chalamet’s portrayal, contempt seeming aloof during his relationships with women – and the people assemblage – arsenic the movie delves into the backlash the Nobel Prize-winner faced erstwhile helium started utilizing electrical instruments.

Mangold said: “Every narration successful your beingness erstwhile you’re met with aboriginal occurrence similar that tin abruptly crook and go transactional, arsenic so it was for Dylan.”

The manager claimed that “Seeger needed him to beforehand the people euphony world”, portion US people vocalist Joan Baez, played by Oscar-nominee Monica Barbaro, “could not constitute songs similar him”, and “others, similar (folk recordist) Alan Lomax, wanted him to enactment the question astatine each costs”.

“If everyone successful your beingness has an agenda, it lone makes consciousness that you commencement to separate, oregon get aloof, oregon disconnect, oregon compartmentalise successful immoderate mode that you tin inactive relation amid each that pressure,” helium added.

Mangold said Dylan had told him of the “loneliness helium felt during this play of his life, that helium felt unsocial penning the songs, unsocial successful the greenish country earlier helium went on, unsocial successful the spotlight, connected the stage, unsocial erstwhile helium went location alone” and “alone with the public”.

Dylan had besides told him his “prime information for wanting to person a set was feeling conscionable without immoderate mates, feeling similar everyone successful his satellite wanted something”.

He added that it was a “pretty dense burden” to transportation arsenic a young antheral who was creating influential songs, including 1962’s Blowin’ In The Wind and 1964’s The Times They Are A-Changin’, and astatine the aforesaid clip “win a congeniality trophy”.

Mangold, who has been nominated for his archetypal directing Oscar for A Complete Unknown, has erstwhile Academy Award nominations, including champion representation for sports biopic Ford Vs Ferrari, and adapted screenplay for superhero movie Logan.

But asked if helium had been amazed not to gain a information for directing Johnny Cash biopic Walk The Line successful 2005, helium said: “I can’t unlock the mysteries of wherefore antithetic awards groups nominate what they nominate.

“The vagaries and unusual winds that stroke each twelvemonth are not lone intolerable to fig retired but champion not thought about.

“You should bask it erstwhile it happens and effort and fto it spell erstwhile it doesn’t.”