Bob Dylan Denies Dancer's Claim of 'No Eye Contact' Rule: 'That Is Just Ridiculous'

Bob Dylan is hitting back at claims that he made a dancer not look him in the eyes.

Taking to his X account, Dylan shared his thoughts on Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds after he watched their concert in Paris. Underneath his tweet, a woman by the name of Cheryl Henry claimed to be a former backup dancer for the "Like a Rolling Stone" singer. In her response, she claimed that Dylan told her not to look him in the eyes.

"My Joy was taken away after rehearsing as one of the Backup dancers for your set on the Grammys in NYC 1991. We all had to walk single file to exit thru the backstage area, past the dressing rooms where you were standing wearing a hooded black robe, kinda like the boxers used to wear & you said to me as I passed you 'Now don't you go cutting that long red hair of yours before tomorrow night," her tweet started.

"By the time I reached the exit door at Radio City, I had been told not to return. Nadine (who was running things) had told us all before NOT to make eye contact with you! I guess I snuck a peek as I passed you! I had a letter with me also from an old friend of yours Katherine Perry who knew you in your West Village days. It wasn't meant to be Gemini Man..." she added.

Dylan saw this response under his tweet and shared his thoughts on the situation, where he dismissed the claim as "ridiculous" and told her to look him in the eyes the next time they meet.

"Saw your reply. Just want you to know I've never told anybody not to make eye contact with me. That is just ridiculous. And the next time you see me please look straight into my eyes," Dylan tweeted back.

The Dylan drama unfurls as the press around his new biopic, A Complete Unknown, goes into overdrive.

For the film, actor Timothée Chalamet -- who plays Dylan in the film -- said that it took him 5 years to learn how to play a harmonica just like Dylan does.

"It was the best experience I've had as an actor or the most rewarding experience I've had doesn't really necessarily translate to the effect of it, not only on people, but maybe in the finished product because I've also had more challenging experiences that come out great," Chalamet said.

Chalamet also was inspired by Christian Bale to method act for the movie. His co-star, Edward Norton, said that Chalamet was "relentless" while filming.

"No visitors, no friends, no reps, no nothing. 'Nobody comes around us while we're doing this.' We're trying to do the best we can with something that's so totemic and sacrosanct to many people," Norton told Rolling Stone.

Chalamet also told the outlet, "It was something I would go to sleep panicked about: losing a moment of discovery as the character — no matter how pretentious that sounds — because I was on my phone or because of any distraction."

"I had three months of my life to play Bob Dylan, after five years of preparing to play him. So while I was in it, that was my eternal focus. He deserved that and then more.... God forbid I missed a step because I was being Timmy. I could be Timmy for the rest of my life!" the actor added.

Tags

Bob Dylan, Music