'A Complete Unknown' Won't Stop Playing a Song for Audiences at the Global Box Office

A Complete Unknown

By Rahul Malhotra

Published Feb 2, 2025

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Image Via Searchlight Pictures

A release strategy that worked handsomely for the drama-thriller Conclave seems to be working for A Complete Unknown as well. Both films were positioned as awards season favorites and weren't rolled out internationally before they'd essentially completed their domestic runs. But despite this staggered release, they've both managed to pass the $80 million milestone at the global box office. Directed by James Mangold and starring Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown dramatizes the early life and career of the iconic Bob Dylan.

With $67 million domestically and another $20 million from overseas markets, A Complete Unknown's cumulative global haul now stands at $87 million. The movie has now recovered its production budget, which was reported to be as high as $70 million. And considering that it is still early days in its overseas run, A Complete Unknown has a proper shot at passing the $100 million milestone very soon. While the movie opened to mostly positive reviews, it was also observed that it doesn't budge from music-biopic tropes all that drastically. However, it picked up steam in the weeks leading up to the Oscar nominations and ultimately earned eight.

Chalamet earned a Best Actor nod, while Mangold earned a Best Director nomination. Edward Norton and Monica Barbaro were recognized in the supporting categories. A Complete Unknown appears to have settled at a "fresh" 80% rating on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, but more impressively, its audience score stands at 95%. In his review, Collider's Ross Bonaime wrote that the movie "can’t fight off the formulaic nature of the genre, yet still finds a bold and captivating way to tell Dylan’s story."

'A Complete Unknown' Is a Worthy Addition to this New Wave of Music Biopics

Adept at different genres, Mangold previously directed the hit music biopic Walk the Line, which made over $185 million worldwide two decades ago. This seems to be the range in which most music biopics settle. Bob Marley: One Love earned over $180 million worldwide recently, while Rocketman grossed around $195 million. A few years ago, Elvis made over $280 million globally. That being said, there have been a few missteps as well; most notably, the recent biopics of Robbie Williams and Amy Winehouse.

You can watch A Complete Unknown in theaters, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.