I’m not necessarily a believer these days in the tedious compliation of “best of” lists, mostly because at least from my purview there wasn’t all that much that went right for me in 2024. Save for the welcome distraction of a surprising and at times unbelievable run for the New York Mets, we’re winding down a year in media, sports, politics and life–effectively the intersections that we muse about–that I’m personally jazzed to see come to an end.
But if we were to give out plaudits and accolades to someone who nailed it and then some across all of the disciplines, I’d be awarding my hardware to Timothee Hal Chalamet.
He was already having a darn good year before this week, still basking in the afterglow of his headturning portrayal of Willy Wonka in the 2023 iteration that has endeared him to his generation in at least as favorable a manner as how Gene Wilder did to mine. Then a reprise of his Paul Atreides role in the second theatrical installment of DUNE established him as arguably the box office king of the hour, eclipsing even what WONKA delivered for a total of more than $1.3 billion worldwide for his two most recent releases to date. And on Christmas Day, the rest of us can see what a lot of reviewers and awards committees have already determined to be one of his best performances yet, transforming himself into the young Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s A COMPLETE UNKNOWN.
Taking on the portrayal of someone as iconic and oft-imitated at Dylan, especially when that person is still alive, is perhaps an actor’s most challenging and potentially harshly critiqued assignment. But the majority of reviews to date suggest that Chalamet has thread that needle as masterfully as he did taking on iconic fictional portrayals, with additional shout outs to Mangold. Per ROGEREBERT.com’s Brian Tallerico:
“A Complete Unknown” is about all the variables that shape and warp creativity. Eschewing the often-shallow approach of the cradle-to-the-grave biopic to tell a formative chapter in music and world history, Mangold’s film fluidly captures the intersection of art and fame with solid performances, unshowy direction, and organic editing. As someone who generally loathes the “greatest hits” storytelling of films about famous figures and how they often rely on the printed legend instead of doing anything, and someone who has a strong love for the music of the purposefully enigmatic Bob Dylan, I have to admit to expecting “A Complete Unknown” to be predictably out of tune. Like its subject has done so many times in his six-decade career, this one exceeds expectations.
Added EDGE MEDIA NETWORK’s Frank J. Avella:
Timothée Chalamet fully embodies Bob Dylan in “A Complete Unknown.” …he also honors the enigma. James Mangold is smart enough to let the music and poetry of Dylan’s work tell most of the tale.
And THE OBSERVER’s Emily Zemler:
Timothée Chalamet looks, acts, even sings like Bob Dylan in this biopic. But director James Mangold treats Dylan as a mythical figure rather than a person, leaving his mystery intact.
Finally, via NBC NEWS.com’s Rebecca Cohen, the thoughts of perhaps the most qualified person to critique this particular performance:
Bob Dylan has nothing but praise for Timothée Chalamet, who plays the famed singer-songwriter in the upcoming “A Complete Unknown” film about Dylan’s life.
Dylan took to X on Wednesday to share his excitement for the biopic and his faith in Chalamet’s taking on the role.
“There’s a movie about me opening soon called A Complete Unknown (what a title!),” Dylan wrote about the movie that opens Christmas Day.
Timothee Chalamet is starring in the lead role,” Dylan continued. “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.”
And yet, that’s not where the list of plaudits ends. Because thanks to a recent promotional turn on the signature college football pre-game show, we’ve learned that in case this whole acting thing doesn’t work out, Chalamet’s apparently already doing better at handicapping than many of those who do it on a full-time basis. As THE NEW YORK POST’s Andrew Battifarano wrote a week ago:
Timothée Chalamet didn’t think twice and was more than alright on Saturday’s edition of “College GameDay” on ESPN. Some were curious about why Chalamet, a New York-born actor with seemingly no connection to Power 5 football, was chosen to be the guest picker on the college football program that was being held in Atlanta ahead of the SEC title game.
Well, the “A Complete Unknown” star showed he has some chops on the sports punditry circuit. And, not only that, he seemed to do plenty of research as he made his picks ahead of an important slate of conference championship games.
He particularly stood out for his picks for the SWAC — Jackson State — and the MAC — Ohio.
“Jackson State, eight wins in a row, 11 all-conference players — this should be a comfortable, easy win for them,” Chalamet said with plenty of confidence, getting plenty of love with shoulder taps from show regulars Pat McAfee and Kirk Herbstreit.
Instead of picking a favorite in the MAC title game between Miami of Ohio and Ohio, Chalamet had his reasons to pick an upset.
“The Red Hawks defense looks good, but I’m looking at fourth-year quarterback Parker Navarro. Sixty-five percent completion rate. If he can get going, he’ll tilt this in favor of the Bobcat. I’m going underdog Bobcats here, underdog Bobcats.”
That bold pick earned a strong handshake from McAfee.
Of course, those picks proved to be as spot on as have been his performances. And at the top of this week, his performance as Dylan earned him his fourth Golden Globe nomination. And with that, the January 8th event may be the first time the Red Carpet will be covered by both ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT and FANDUEL TV.
You tell me who’s had a better 2024. Or who’s teed up to have an even better 2025.
Until next time…