Timothée Chalamet fined for red carpet stunt in UK

Anyone following the A Complete Unknown press tour has been treated to the endlessly entertaining Timothée Chalamet show, including recreating some of Dylan’s iconic looks on the red carpets.

The 29-year-old French-American actor is a joy on talk shows and his portrayal of Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s biopic, which charts Dylan’s controversial switch from acoustic to electric in the mid-60s, has earned him praise – as well as nominations at the Golden Globes and BAFTAs. He’s already a shoo-in for the Oscars – with the delayed nominations announced on Thursday 23 January.

However, one of his fun stunts during the London premiere of A Complete Unknown has resulted in a fine…

Chalamet revealed on the French TV show Quotidien that he was given a fine for riding a Lime e-bike on the red carpet in London on 14 January. He stated that his failure to properly park the dockless electric bike – which can be hired short term through a smartphone app, which tracks where you drop them off – led to him being charged £60 (€70).

When asked why he chose to arrive via the e-bike, he replied: “It’s ecological!”, before admitting that the unconventional mode of transport to a premiere was a last-minute decision due to traffic.

Aside from the Brits being spoilsports on this occasion (and e-bike journeys often being more expensive than the equivalent trip on a bus or tube, FYI), Chalamet can bask in the knowledge that Bob Dylan himself praised him for his acting talent.

“There’s a movie about me opening soon called A Complete Unknown (what a title!),” the musician began. “Timothee Chalamet is starring in the lead role. 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.”

Dylan continued: “The film’s taken from Elijah Wald’s Dylan Goes Electric – a book that came out in 2015. It’s a fantastic retelling of events from the early ‘60s that led up to the fiasco at Newport. After you’ve seen the movie read the book.” 

Chalamet responded to the praise while quote-tweeting Dylan’s post. “Floored,” he wrote. “I am so grateful. Thank you Bob.”

A Complete Unknown came out in the US on 25 December 2024 and is released in the UK and Ireland tomorrow. The mainland European rollout starts at the end of this month and into February for countries like Germany, Spain and the Netherlands.  

Additional sources • Quotidien