Warning! We’re about to talk about the new biopic on Bob Dylan, “A Complete Unknown” (currently in theaters). If you haven’t seen it yet, save this article to read later.

What’s true and what’s made up in “A Complete Unknown,” which portrays Bob Dylan’s rise to fame during his initial four years?

Bob Dylan has always been notorious for his elusive personal history; in his early days, he misrepresented his origins—claiming to be from New Mexico rather than Minnesota and even fabricating tales about joining a circus. As a result, numerous Dylan biographers have struggled to establish an accurate narrative.

However, director James Mangold had no intention of creating a documentary. Instead, he chose to manipulate timelines and events from the early 1960s to maintain a dynamic narrative flow.

“When you’re making a biopic, many expect it to be a historical account filled with dates and text, but I wasn’t interested in that approach,” Mangold told YSL News. “I aimed to tell the story with the same credibility as a fictional film, where precise dates are secondary. I repeatedly mentioned, ‘We’re not creating a Disney Hall of Presidents display with an animated president reciting notable speeches.’

Was Pete Seeger present when Bob Dylan visited his idol Woody Guthrie in a New Jersey hospital?

Different accounts from Dylan’s early days in New York indicate he likely met Pete Seeger after the folk legend saw the newcomer perform in Greenwich Village, prompting Seeger to pay close attention to Dylan’s budding career.

In “A Complete Unknown,” the film suggests that their first encounter occurred when Dylan (Timothée Chalamet) visited ailing Guthrie (Scoot McNairy) at Greystone psychiatric hospital in New Jersey. Norton is fairly certain that both artists were present on multiple occasions at Guthrie’s side, as Seeger was a close friend of the iconic songwriter and Dylan frequently made visits.

“The movie condensed several events, but Pete was Woody’s longest companion, so whether Bob and Pete met there or not, they were definitely together at some point,” shared Norton. Regarding whether Dylan performed his song “Song to Woody” for Guthrie, Norton expressed, “Given that it was his first composition, I think it’s almost certain he would have played it for him.”

Is Sylvie Russo, Bob Dylan’s first girlfriend in New York represented in the film as an actual person?

Bob Dylan’s initial serious relationship in New York was with Suze Rotolo, a politically engaged young woman who had a significant impact on him. Rotolo is famously depicted with Dylan in a frozen Greenwich Village scene on the cover of his second album, 1963’s “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan.”

In his autobiography “Chronicles: Volume One,” Dylan vividly describes their first encounter: “From the very first moment, I couldn’t take my eyes off her. She was the most captivating person I had ever laid eyes on. She had fair skin, golden hair, and was of full-blood Italian descent.”

In “A Complete Unknown,” Rotolo’s character is referred to as Sylvie Russo (played by Elle Fanning). This name change was requested by Dylan himself. Mangold noted, “He simply asked if it could be adjusted. He still cherishes her memory. She has passed away, but she was an early love in his life prior to becoming Bob Dylan.”

Did crowds at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival actually shout ‘Judas!’ at Bob Dylan for performing with electric instruments?

As the mid-1960s approached, Dylan moved away from folk music, eager to join a band and immerse himself in the electric music scene. This shift upset many fans, who viewed it as a betrayal. Some even shouted “Judas!” during his performances.

In “A Complete Unknown,” the infamous “Judas!” shouts occur during his energetic 1965 Newport Folk Festival concert, a pivotal moment when “Dylan went electric.” However, as captured in D.A. Pennebaker’s 1967 film “Don’t Look Back,” these shouts were more prevalent during his 1965 tour in Britain.

“He debuted his electric material abroad first, which led to the ‘Judas’ shouts,” explains Mangold. “But I chose to depict it at Newport to avoid subjecting the audience to it twice. The essence of the scene is that he is announcing his identity as a rock artist in front of the very crowd that made him a folk icon.”

Did Pete Seeger try to cut the cables while Bob Dylan played his electric set at Newport Folk Festival?

It’s clear that Seeger, a longtime supporter of Dylan’s folk-oriented talent, felt let down when Dylan defied the Newport Folk Festival’s expectations by performing a loud, albeit brief, electric set.

But did he actually attempt to grab an axe to sever the sound cables?

“A lot of urban legends evolved around that moment,” notes Norton. “I talked to Peter Yarrow from Peter, Paul & Mary, who was present, and to Pete’s oldest daughter, who was 17 at the time. He didn’t take an axe to cut the cord; rather, there were people who misheard him saying, ‘If I had an axe, I’d cut the cable.’ His daughter claimed she’d never witnessed him so furious, and her mother Toshi did intervene, as depicted in the film.

“So, this portrayal is quite close to what really happened.”