“A Complete Unknown,” the Bob Dylan film starring Timothée Chalamet, was a very Jersey affair.
The movie filmed extensively in New Jersey, with the production transforming local streets into 1960s Manhattan and Newport, Rhode Island — and sometimes even 1960s Jersey. Local diners and other businesses hosted Chalamet, the crew and director James Mangold for the story of a young Bob Dylan’s rise to stardom.
So before you head out to see the film this Christmas (the movie debuts in theaters Dec. 25), here’s a full rundown of Jersey spots you may catch in the movie.
The production was all over the state — like a rolling stone, you might say — from Jersey City and Hoboken to Newark, Belleville, Paterson, Elizabeth, Kinnelon, Blairstown, Highlands, Red Bank, Cape May and more. All told, 20 cities and towns across 10 counties.
Chalamet’s co-stars in the film include Elle Fanning as Sylvie Russo, a character based on Dylan’s former artist girlfriend Suze Rotolo; Edward Norton as Pete Seeger; and Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez.
The movie was just nominated for a Golden Globe for best picture – drama. Chalamet, widely seen as an Oscar pick for best actor, was nominated for best actor in a film drama at the Globes, while Norton was nominated for best supporting actor.
Director James Mangold and Chalamet in April on the “A Complete Unknown” set in Newark. Filming spanned 20 towns and cities across 10 Jersey counties. Jose Perez | Bauer-Griffin | GC Images
Joe Marra, project officer with the New Jersey Motion Picture and Television Commission, tells NJ Advance Media “A Complete Unknown” spent $80,900,606 filming in New Jersey.
Filming started in March and was still happening as recently as June.
All stage work was done at Palisade Stages in Kearny.
See below for a county-by-county breakdown of the Jersey filming locations, plus the scenes they’re associated with in the movie.
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Hudson County
Pulaski Skyway and Route 139Jersey City: Station wagon opening driving scene, 1961.
William J. Brennan CourthouseJersey City: Federal courtroom, 1961.
Snapdragon Coffee & SocialJersey City: Village coffee house, 1962.
Miss America DinerJersey City: Diner, 1962.
White Mana DinerJersey City: Chinatown restaurant, 1962.
Sausage barJersey City: West Village bar, 1962.
Efe’s GrillJersey City: Kettle of Fish bar, 1965
Jersey AvenueJersey City: Bleecker and MacDougal streets, 1961. Also MacDougal Street, 1962 and 1965.
Virile BarbershopJersey City: Folkore Center, 1961.
Jersey Avenue between Columbus and Mercer streetsJersey City: Sixth Avenue, 1965.
Subia’s Vegan CafeJersey City: Caffè Reggio on MacDougal Street, 1963.
St. Matthew’s Lutheran ChurchJersey City: Alan Lomax’s office, 1965.
Timothée Chalamet in a scene from “A Complete Unknown” filmed in Hoboken.Macall Polay | Searchlight Pictures
S&L DentalHoboken: Gerde’s Folk City, 1961
Hudson Street and 10th StreetHoboken: Snow on Jones and Fourth Street, 1963
Moran’s PubHoboken: McCann’s Bar and Restaurant, 1965.
Columbus ParkHoboken: West Village park, 1961
746 Park Ave. Hoboken: Paul Sargent Clothing Store
Little City BooksHoboken: West Village record shop, 1962 and 1963
1042 Park Ave., Hoboken: Young Bob Dylan’s apartment, 1962.
219 11th St.Hoboken: Bob’s neighbors, 1962.
1130 Bloomfield St. and 814 Bloomfield St.Hoboken: Sylvie’s apartment, 1965.
Elks Lodge No. 74Hoboken: Gerde’s Folk City, 1961 and 1962. Also dressing room, The Gaslight, 1962.
Elle Fanning and Timothée Chalamet filming in Paterson in April. Jose Perez | Bauer-Griffin | GC Images
Passaic County
Main Street between Van Houten and Ellison streetsPaterson: Riverside Church, 1962.
Uceda InstitutePaterson: Movie theater, 1962.
Paterson City Council/155 Market St., Paterson: Civil rights rally, 1962.
Board of Health office/125 Ellison St., Paterson: D.C. hotel, 1963.
Ellison Street between Main and Washington streetsPaterson: City street, 1962.
Rutt’s HutClifton, El Paso club parking lot, 1963.
Chalamet filming in Newark, where 1180 Raymond Blvd. stood in for Columbia Records. Jose Perez | Bauer-Griffin | GC Images
Essex County
Cherry Lane and Brookside DriveMillburn; between Northfield and Glen avenuesWest Orange: Road in New Jersey.
The former Essex County Isolation Hospital/Soho HospitalBelleville: Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital, 1961.
Dayton Street SchoolNewark: Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital in 1961, 1962, 1963 and 1965.
Newark Symphony Hall: San Francisco concert, 1963. Also movie theater, 1962.
744 Broad St., Newark: Harold Leventhal’s apartment, 1965.
1180 Raymond Blvd.Newark: Columbia Records, 1961 and 1965.
5 Commerce St.Newark: CBS Records, 1963.
51 Bank St.Newark: Harold Leventhal’s apartment building, exterior, 1965.
Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez performing with Chalamet’s Dylan at Echo Lake Park in Mountainside, which provided the film’s setting for California’s Monterey Folk Festival. Bobby Bank | GC Images
Union County
Echo Lake ParkMountainside: Monterey Folk Festival, 1963; the March on Washington, 1963; Newport Folk Festival.
Crescent Avenue Presbyterian ChurchPlainfield: Riverside Church, 1962.
Ritz TheatreElizabeth: Carnegie Hall, 1963; Town Hall theater, 1961 and 1963.
Bergen County
Alpine lookout, Palisades Interstate ParkwayAlpine: Hudson River view at Pete Seeger’s cabin.
Somerset County
Stoutsburg Sourland African American MuseumSkillman, Montgomery Township: Small Southern church, 1962.
Edward Norton as Pete Seeger. Scenes set at Seeger’s home were filmed in Blairstown and Alpine. Searchlight Pictures
Warren County
952 Old School House RoadBlairstown: Pete Seeger’s house, 1961 and 1962.
Morris County
224 Boonton Ave., Kinnelon: Joan Baez’s house in Northern California, 1963.
Monmouth County
Bahrs Landing and Moby’s Lobster DeckHighlands: Downtown Newport, Rhode Island, 1965.
Count Basie Center for the ArtsRed Bank: Pittsburgh music venue, 1965.
Fanning and Chalamet filmed Newport Folk Festival scenes depicting Rhode Island in Cape May. Searchlight Pictures
Cape May County
Perry Street between Carpenters Lane and Beach Avenue; Beach Avenue between Congress and Decatur streets, Cape May: Newport, Rhode Island streets, 1965.
Victorian MotelCape May: Viking Hotel, 1965. Also the alley near Savoy Hotel in London where Dylan filmed the promotional cue-card clip for the song “Subterranean Homesick Blues,” also featured in D.A. Pennebaker’s “Don’t Look Back” about Dylan’s 1965 tour in England.
Cape May Ferry TerminalNorth Cape May: Providence Ferry Terminal, Rhode Island, 1965.
Ocean Drive (County Road 621)Lower Township: Bridge to Newport, 1965.
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Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at [email protected] and followed at @AmyKup.
