It’s been 16 years since a Bob Dyman property has graced the big screen with, “I’m Not There” but times, they are a-changin’. And this time, a Bob Dylan musical is about to hit the big screen.
Blueprint Pictures (the company behind “The Banshees of Inisherin”) announced Chlöe Bailey, Tosin Cole, Olivia Colman and Woody Harrelson will star in Girl from the North Country, an adaptation of the Tony-winning Broadway show inspired by the music of Bob Dylan. The film will be written and directed by Conor McPherson, who wrote the book for the Broadway musical, and produced by Blueprint Pictures’ Graham Broadbent and Pete Czernin.
The original Broadway show reimagined 20 legendary Bob Dylan songs, including Forever Young, All Along The Watchtower, Hurricane, Slow Train Coming, Make You Feel My Love and Like A Rolling Stone.
Set in 1934 against the backdrop of Duluth, Minnesota during the Great Depression, the drama revolves around a group of wayward travelers, whose lives intersect in a guesthouse filled with music, life and hope.
Things are spiraling out of control for proprietor Nick Laine (Harrelson). His wife Elizabeth (Colman) is suffering from dementia. The bank is foreclosing on their home. Their adopted daughter, Marianne (Bailey), has a closely guarded secret that no one can explain.
When escaped convict Joe Scott (Cole) seeks shelter at the guesthouse, a relationship develops between Marianne and Joe that will change everything for everyone forever in a timeless love story.
Dylan said of the original Girl from The North Country: “To be associated with Conor is one of the highlights of my professional life. It goes without saying the man is a genius for putting this thing together and I’m thrilled to be a part of the experience. My songs couldn’t be in better hands. The play had me crying at the end. I can’t even say why. When the curtain came down, I was stunned. I really was.”
The staged musical ran on Broadway after opening in London beginning in 2017 (as well as a stint in Toronto in 2019). The musical was originally set in Duluth, Minnesota during the Great Depression where, according to the official synopsis, “a group of wayward travelers’ lives intersect in a guesthouse filled with music, life and hope.”
Colman appearing in Sam Mendes’ “Empire of Light” and Harrelson stealing scenes in the Oscar-nominated farce “Triangle of Sadness.” Colman will next be seen in Paul King’s “Wonka” this Christmas and on Marvel Studios’ upcoming Disney+ series “Secret Invasion,” while Harrelson will be in Focus Features’ comedy “Champions” and on the small screen in HBO’s “White House Plumbers,” about the Watergate conspiracy. Cole previously co-starred in “Till,” while Bailey is known as a recording artist and one half of Chloe x Halle and for appearances on “grown•ish” and “black•ish.”
