Watch Bruce Springsteen Give Surprise Acoustic Performance at NYC

Bruce Springsteen made a surprise appearance at the New York Film Festival on Sunday, September 28, attending a special screening of Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere, a new biopic chronicling the making of his 1982 acoustic album Nebraska. Held at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, the event drew both film and music fans eager to see the first cinematic portrayal of one of Springsteen’s most intimate works.

Following the screening, Springsteen took the stage alongside the film’s cast, crew, and director Scott Cooper to offer a speech that was equal parts humorous and emotional. He capped the evening with an unexpected solo performance of his 1999 track “Land of Hope and Dreams.”

A Cast That Struck a Chord

Deliver Me from Nowhere, directed and co-written by Scott Cooper, stars Jeremy Allen White as Springsteen, with Jeremy Strong portraying longtime manager Jon Landau. The cast also includes Stephen Graham as Springsteen’s father, Doug; Gaby Hoffmann as his mother, Adele; Odessa Young as love interest Faye; and newcomer Matthew Pellicano Jr. as a young Bruce.

After the screening, Cooper introduced the cast and crew to the audience, then passed the microphone to Springsteen.

“I want to thank everybody for coming out to see our film tonight. And our crew, [and] the great cast,” Springsteen began. He singled out White for “putting his whole heart and soul into the part,” adding that the Bear actor “did such a wonderful job.” With a smile, he joked, “Thanks for playing a much better-looking version of me.”

Springsteen also praised Strong “for his creativity and his inspiration,” noting, “He had us on the phone at all hours of the night, just with different ideas.” With a laugh, he added, “And he played a much, much better-looking [version of] Jon Landau. I have to say. So we appreciate that very much.”

He went on to call Young’s performance “fabulous” and described Graham as “the living embodiment of my late father, who had a very difficult life but was a good, goodhearted man.” Hoffman, he said, gave “a wonderful portrayal” of his mother.

“They’re all gone now,” Springsteen added poignantly, “so it’s nice to have this piece of film.”

As for young Pellicano, Springsteen said, “It was his first film. He’s got the sunglasses already, and he just got his first guitar. That’s what I heard. So he has some difficult choices ahead. That’s all I can tell him. But I’ll declare him the future of rock ‘n’ roll tonight.”

Honoring a Personal Chapter

Springsteen took a moment to thank director Scott Cooper, calling him a “wonderful writer/director” who “took a very personal moment in my life and honored my experience and my work and my family.” He also acknowledged the producers and studio team behind the film, expressing his gratitude for bringing such a personal story to the screen.

The film is based on Deliver Me from Nowhere, a 2023 nonfiction book by Warren Zanes, who co-wrote the screenplay with Cooper. Beyond depicting the lo-fi recording sessions of Nebraska, the film explores Springsteen’s inner struggles during that period, including his battle with Columbia Records over releasing such a stark, unconventional album.

Both Springsteen and Landau were actively involved in the film’s production, ensuring its authenticity and emotional weight.

A Song, a Sister, and a Statement

Before wrapping up the evening, Springsteen addressed the current political climate, sharing his ongoing concerns while reaffirming his belief in the American spirit.

“These days, you know, we have daily events reminding us of the fact that we’re living through these particularly dangerous times,” he said. “I spent my life on the road. I’ve been moving around the world as kind of a musical ambassador for America … trying to measure the distance between American reality, where we’ve often fallen short of our ideals, and the American dream.”

He continued, “I’ve seen that America, as battered as she feels right now, [still] continues to be the land of hope and dreams. Not of fear or divisiveness or government censorship or hatred. That America’s worth fighting for.”

Springsteen then picked up his guitar—his “lifelong weapon of choice”—and dedicated a performance of “Land of Hope and Dreams” to “all the folks that worked so hard on the film, all our wonderful collaborators.”

Before playing, he recalled attending an earlier screening with his sister, Virginia. During an emotional scene in which young Bruce sits on his father’s lap, she holds his hand. “After the film ended,” Springsteen said, “she says, ‘Isn’t it wonderful that we have this?’ And that’s how I feel about it. It’s wonderful that I have this. Thank you, everybody. Appreciate it. This is for you guys.”

Coming Soon to Theaters

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere is set for a wide theatrical release on October 24. With critical buzz already building, the film stands not only as a portrait of a pivotal album, but as a deeply human story of creativity, memory, and legacy—told with the same honesty and heart that defines Springsteen’s music.