Bob Dylan Lost a Major Movie Role Because of a Fight With His Manager
Bob Dylan has been a musician for decades, but like many of his rock star peers, he dabbled in movie roles. He appeared in documentaries and taped concert events, but Dylan also accepted genuine acting roles. These parts are a less-thought-of portion of Dylan’s body of work, but he once had a chance at a more substantial role. Unfortunately, the offer went to his manager at a time when he and Dylan were not on good terms.
Bob Dylan is primarily a musician, but he acted in several movies
In 1973, Dylan acted in his first dramatic role in Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid. The film also featured fellow musician Kris Kristofferson, but Dylan was the one who created the soundtrack. In 1987, Dylan had a more significant role in the film Hearts of Fire, in which he played, fittingly, a reclusive musician.
Dylan played a musician again in the 2003 film Masked and Anonymous. He also created the lengthy 1978 film Renaldo and Clara, which combined concert footage, documentary interviews, and fictional vignettes.
Bob Dylan lost out on a movie role after a falling out with his manager
Not all of Dylan’s acting roles have been well-received, so he’s primarily stuck to music. In 1967, though, he had the chance to star in what would be an Academy Award-nominated film, Bonnie and Clyde. Producer and star Warren Beatty said that Dylan was his first choice for the titular role of Clyde Barrow.
“I’m not really like Clyde Barrow at all,” he told HuffPost in 2017. “Neither is Faye [Dunaway] like Bonnie. When I first saw the idea of Bonnie and Clyde, I thought Bob Dylan would be the ideal Clyde.”
According to Dylan, he was never even aware that Beatty wanted him for the part. The musician was fighting with his manager, and the news never reached him.
“No, the offer was sent to my manager’s office and we weren’t speaking; we had had a falling out,” he explained in a 2017 interview on his official website. “I didn’t get any mail or offers that were sent there.”
Beatty, who received a nomination for Best Actor for his performance in the role, is likely happy he ended up casting himself.
The musician wanted to create and star in a TV series
More recently, Dylan had another chance at a starring role. With the help of comedy writer Larry Charles, he created a slapstick comedy series and pitched it to HBO. The network greenlit the series, but Dylan almost immediately decided he no longer wanted to move forward with it.
“We go out to the elevator — Bob’s manager Jeff, my manager Gavin, me and Bob – the three of us are elated we actually sold the project and Bob says, ‘I don’t want to do it anymore. It’s too slapsticky,'” Charles explained, per Rolling Stone. “He’s not into it. That’s over. The slapstick phase has officially ended.”
