In 1955, ambitious Hollywood photographer Dennis Stock and the then still unknown James Dean meet at one of Nicholas Ray's parties. Stock recognises in the young actor, who has just completed filming East of Eden, an extraordinary talent and hopes to further his own career via a series of portraits for "Life" magazine. Newcomer Dean is stressed by studio boss Jack Warner's demands for him to get on the PR bandwagon for Elia Kazan's film and goes into hiding in the country. Stock accompanies the camera-shy star to his native ranch in Indiana where he has his roots. Once back in New York, Stock captures the world famous image which keeps the legend alive to this day.
Anton Corbijn is less interested in the life of the idol of a new generation than in the creation of a myth and the role "Life" photographer Dennis Stock's portraits had in the iconisation of Dean. The meeting of these two young men led to the creation of a series of world famous images of a cult star before he died at the age of just 24. "James Dean haunted Times Square" went on to become one of the most reproduced photograhps of the 20th century.