Cate Blanchett as Bob Dylan, how apt!
Dylan is backing the film. He has reportedly given Haynes access to his complete back catalogue and -- to keep the budget down -- also given up a lot of money the makers would have to pay him.
For those familiar with the many faces of the 'Song And Dance Man' -- that's how Dylan described himself in 1965 when asked if he was a poet or singer - the casting won't really come as a surprise. The singer is, after all, many people rolled into one. A hologram that looks different from every angle.
To the Believers, he is the ultimate socialist, the ultimate protester. To cynics, he is the ultimate individualist; The One who realised the war within is greater than the war outside.
For those who believe Dylan's best work happened before 1965 -- the year the folk singer turned rock renegade by hiring an electric backing band for the Newport Folk Festival -- songs like Times they are a-changin' and Blowin' in the wind are testimony to the power of art as a means of social change.
To those who believe in art for art's sake, albums like Blood On The Tracks show how the quest for oneself and the turmoil within can bleed immortal words and music.