Timothée Chalamet surprises fans at U of M, The Main Cinema in Minneapolis
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Thee Timothée Chalamet greeted hundreds of cheering fans across Minneapolis on Thursday during a last-minute visit to promote the upcoming Bob Dylan biopic, “A Complete Unknown.”
Chalamet stars as Dylan in the film, which chronicles the iconic singer-songwriter’s rise after moving to New York in 1961. It’s scheduled to hit theaters Dec. 25.
The actor appeared on and around the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus and walked the red carpet outside The Main Theater, which hosted an early screening of the movie.
“I loved it here and I love Minnesota, and I find the people to be really generous and nice and generous of spirit,” Chalamet said before the screening.
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Chalamet tipped off fans with mysterious Instagram post
Fans peeped something may be afoot when Chalamet posted a maroon and gold “M” — the unmistakable University of Minnesota logo — to his Instagram story late Wednesday night.
Some U of M students reported having received direct invitations to a Thursday Q&A with the actor in Minneapolis, with a post-screening reception to follow. Marketing agency Allied Global Marketing confirmed to MPR News on Wednesday afternoon that Chalamet would indeed be attending a screening of “A Complete Unknown” at The Main Cinema.
The action started around 2:30 p.m., when Chalamet posted a photo of the Varsity Theater to his Instagram story with text that simply read: “TONITE.”
Soon after, fans began posting photos and videos of him around the University of Minnesota campus. U of M posted a video around 5:45 p.m. of Chalamet visiting the marching band as it played Dylan’s “Like A Rolling Stone.”
One fan, Diego Luis Niquio, said he spotted Chalamet on University Avenue and approached him, and Chalamet invited him to the showing and gave him a ticket.
Crowd waits outside Main Theatre in below-freezing cold
More than 100 people waited, some for more than an hour, outside The Main Cinema in the dark in temperatures in the teens for a glimpse of Chalamet. Among them was Loulou Toner, who envisioned what it would be like when he arrived.
“You know like when there’s an air vacuum? It’s gonna be like that. All the air is gonna leave the room. Time is gonna slow down. I’m just really excited to meet him,” she said.
Chalamet arrived around 7 p.m. and stopped with fans, including Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, to take photos and give signatures.
It’s a fitting launch for the movie. Bob Dylan did a semester at the U of M before dropping out to become a musician. He got his start in the off-campus neighborhood Dinkytown and learned from quiet local legends like ‘Spider’ John Koerner.
Chalamet visited Dylan’s hometown of Hibbing and visited a high school there earlier this year. Chalamet told reporters on Thursday that he also visited Dylan’s birthplace of Duluth twice, and said on his trips he admired Minnesota’s “strange casinos” and skidded a pickup truck on ice “because I didn't know how to drive on the roads out here.”
He recently got Dylan’s mark of approval for his portrayal.
According to a Searchlight Pictures page, there are three other upcoming screenings of “A Complete Unknown” with Chalamet. Others are set for Nashville, Atlanta and Los Angeles.
