Luca Guadagnino Says Bones And All Might Not Have Gotten Made If Not For Timothée Chalamet

Love comes with some unusual conditions in the new film "Bones and All." It's garnering attention for an unflinching mix of horror, drama, and romance. While some viewers might be surprised to see the level of gore director Luca Guadagnino indulges in, others will welcome the use of brutality to convey various themes. The concept is something critics have pointed out as a highlight during the narrative's dark turn. "The cannibalism is provocative and grisly; Guadagnino never shies away from flesh-ripping acts of feeding," wrote Bloody Disgusting's Meagan Navarro.

The filmmaker showed his knowledge of the horror genre with a convincing remake of 1977's "Suspiria." His interpretation of the Dario Argento classic won its own raves from critics; it also broke through the concerns of skeptics who worried the director's take would be an inauthentic copy.

Those credentials, as well as his feature "Call Me By Your Name" receiving an Academy Award nomination for best picture, should have been enough to get any picture greenlit. Surprisingly, that was far from the case. Guadagnino may be a respected name in the film industry, but it took another well-known figure to make "Bones and All" happen.

The adaptation of Camille DeAngelis' novel owes its existence to Timothée Chalamet. Guadagnino addressed the actor's involvement during an interview with Variety; he had no doubts about how important that single factor was in the film's existence. "The honest, direct and completely unapologetic answer is Timothée," the filmmaker said when asked.

"Call Me By Your Name" helped establish Chalamet as a star — in the process giving him an Academy Award nomination for best actor. That partnership with Guadagnino was set for a follow-up to the story, but the project remains in development hell. The filmmaker didn't give up on working with the actor; he sent the script for "Bones and All" to Chalamet while the actor was shooting "Dune." Lockdowns during the COVID pandemic meant Chalamet had time to help the director shape his role.

For Chalamet, it represented a significant moment in his career. "It excited me, because it felt like it was very different than the first project we had done together," he told the outlet. This marks the first time the actor was given such an active role in a character's development. He worked with "Bones and All" screenwriter David Kajganich to reach into the motivations behind the complex role; the results can be seen in his highly praised performance.