Timothee Chalamet was set to play Bob Dylan in the Fox Searchlight biopic “Going Electric.” The film was going to be directed by James Mangold and was said to follow Dylan as he “rises to fame on his way to becoming a folk music icon.” This would have ideally been taking place from the singer’s beginnings in the 1960 folk scene in New York City’s Greenwich Village up until Dylan’s 1966 motorcycle crash.
Notice how I’m writing this in the past tense. According to a Collider interview with cinematographer Phedon Papamichael, Mangold’s Bob Dylan film has been axed due to the recently released COVID precautions that studios are taking. Papamichael added that Mangold is now looking at directing other projects.
Does this mean Mangold will now be focusing on Indiana Jones 5? Mangold’s track record as a director is more-than-decent, his filmography includes the likes of “Ford v Ferrari” “Logan,” and “I Walk the Line.” He hasn’t necessarily had an auteur-like stamp on his films during his career but has evolved into a very competent hired-hand who has lasted now for more than two decades in this ever-shape-shifting industry.
I don’t know about you, but I’m kind of looking forward to the “Michael” sequel. Whether Vantoine directs it or John Logan, it doesn’t matter—it’s an inevitable sh*tshow that will result from its making and release.