Does Timothée Chalamet Play Guitar? His ‘SNL’ Performance Explained

Image Credit: GC Images

Timothée Chalamet is showing off his skills as a musical performer.

On January 25, the 29-year-old actor took to the Saturday Night Live stage, performing some of his favorite songs by Bob Dylan. This performance comes after the success of his latest film, A Complete Unknown, which has earned eight Academy Award nominations.

Chalamet himself received a nomination for Best Actor, while the film also garnered nods for Best Picture, Best Director (James Mangold), Best Supporting Actor (Ed Norton, who portrayed folk singer Pete Seeger), and Best Supporting Actress (Monica Barbaro, who played Joan Baez).

Keep scrolling to learn more and watch his SNL performance.

Did Timothée Chalamet Sing in A Complete Unknown?

Yes, Chalamet sang all the songs in the Bob Dylan biopic.

Initially, the actor prerecorded his vocals to portray the iconic folk-rock singer-songwriter. However, the film’s director, James Mangold, revealed that they “didn’t use them in the movie.” Instead, because Chalamet’s live performance so effectively captured the essence of the singer, they opted to use the real thing.

“Bob’s a mutterer, and Timmy gave his best mutter, so it was pulling that out. He would go from there to that twangy, tough voice that could shrill your eardrums,” Maitland said. “But there were, like four different voices inside of Timmy capturing all those and giving them all character was a whole other dimension.”

Does Timothée Chalamet Play Guitar?

To portray Dylan, Chalamet had to learn to play a couple of instruments in addition to singing.

Guitar coach Larry Saltzman, who began working with Chalamet in 2019, told the New York Post that the actor “took to” playing the guitar “immediately.”

“He never got hung up on anything. He just rose to the occasion every time. It’s a combination of hard work and natural talent,” Saltzman added.