During a conversation with filmmaker Cameron Crowe at the Grammy Museum, Olivia Rodrigo said she hoped actress Monica Barbaro could someday play her in a movie. "Sometimes I see a picture of Monica Barbaro and I'm like, 'Oh, that's a picture of me. Oh no, that's Monica,'" Rodrigo said when asked who would play her in a film. "So maybe her. And she's a fantastic actress."
Crowe responded, "Good choice." Rodrigo then suggested she could also take the role herself, adding that Crowe would have to make the final casting decision. "We'll sidebar," she said, suggesting she would discuss the matter further with the director.
Barbaro played folk singer Joan Baez in the 2024 film A Complete Unknown, opposite Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan. Baez told her hometown paper, the Marin Independent Journal, that she was pleased with the performance. "She looked enough like me and she had my gestures down," Baez said. "You could tell who it was."
Barbaro had five months to prepare for the role, according to the Marin Independent Journal. She worked with a vocal coach and guitar teacher, having no prior singing or guitar experience. "Joan's fingerpicking style is so intricate, so specific, and I had no experience at that," Barbaro said.
