Taking on iconic personalities like Bob Dylan and Joan Baez is no easy feat. Not only did Timothée Chalamet and Monica Barbaro have to capture the mystery that surrounds their presences for “A Complete Unknown,” but also the vocal and instrumental talents many generations have now come to connect with. It would be one thing if these individuals were no longer around, but with both being very much alive and known for speaking their mind, there was an added pressure to make this a representation both would be proud of. For a recent piece in The Hollywood Reporter, Barbaro was open about her fears in fulfilling this task and how it was something on her mind whenever she sang.
“[Bob and Joan] could come out of the woodwork and be like, ‘This movie sucks. It’s nothing like me.’ You have no idea what will happen. And they’re vocal people, so who knows?” said Barbaro, adding later, “I thought about that every day trying to sing as Joan.”
While Barbaro was thrilled to be cast in such an auspicious project, she knew she had a lot of work in front of her if she truly wanted to honor Baez’s gifts. Initially, she thought she’d have a brief period of time to prep, but thanks to the 2023 strikes, she was given a longer stretch to train and rehearse.
“I didn’t sing or play guitar or anything, and when Jim first emailed me telling me I had the job, I freaked out and then ran to get this guitar,” Barbaro said. “At that point, I thought I had five months, and I panicked. I was absolutely terrified.”
With more time to embrace her characters and all her skills and emotions, Barbaro was also given the chance to speak to the real Baez directly in a phone conversation and realized quickly how unthreatened she was by someone telling her and Dylan’s story.
“It was just a funny moment where I kept trying to wave my white flag and be like, ‘This is all done out of respect. And yes, I’m singing as you, but I could never be you.’ Doing that whole dance. And she’s just like, ‘I’m just outside listening to the birds.’ She is Joan,” said Barbaro to THR. “She’s not so concerned with protecting [her legacy] or hovering over it. She signed over her songs [to the film], all her arrangements. She and Bob are sort of similar, in that they’re not so obsessed with dictating this idea of who they are and who they were. They’ve been in the public eye for so long.”
“A Complete Unknown” releases in theaters on December 25 from Searchlight Pictures.