Last year it was Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan, and this year’s big actor-turned-musician transformation is “The Bear” star Jeremy Allen White as New Jersey icon Bruce Springsteen.
We got our first look at White’s performance with the debut trailer for 20th Century Studios’ “Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere,” which is written and directed by “Crazy Heart” and “Black Mass” filmmaker Scott Cooper. The film is based on Warren Zanes’ book of the same name and chronicles the making of Springsteen’s 1982 album “Nebraska,” an intimate collection of tracks that were recorded with the singer-songwriter alone in his home bedroom.
First thing’s first: Yes, that’s White doing his own singing in the film, just as Chalamet did his own singing as Dylan in last year’s “A Complete Unknown.” Moreover, Springsteen himself was a regular on the set of “Deliver Me From Nowhere,” serving as a sounding board as Cooper and White aimed to tell a deeply personal story.
“Making ‘Springsteen’ was deeply moving as it allowed me to step inside the soul of an artist I’ve long admired — and to witness, up close, the vulnerability and strength behind his music,” Cooper said in a statement. “The experience felt like a journey through memory, myth and truth. And more than anything, it was a privilege to translate that raw emotional honesty to the screen, and in doing so, it changed me. I cannot thank Bruce and Jon Landau enough for allowing me to tell their story.”
“Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere” opens exclusively in theaters on Oct. 24 and also features Jeremy Strong as Springsteen’s long-time confidant and manager, Jon Landau; Paul Walter Hauser as guitar tech Mike Batlan; Stephen Graham as Springsteen’s father, Doug; Odessa Young as love interest, Faye; Gaby Hoffmann as Springsteen’s mom, Adele; Marc Maron as Chuck Plotkin; and David Krumholtz as Columbia executive, Al Teller.
The film is produced by Cooper, Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Eric Robinson and Scott Stuber. Tracey Landon, Jon Vein and Zanes executive produce.
