Credit: Inside the MagicMuch like the Avengers, the Marvels, and the Guardians of the Galaxy, some stories are too big to be told by one film alone. In the world of musical biopics, few entities reach that level of fame as much as four lads from Liverpool. Of course the Beatles would need a series as incredible and fabulous as they are.
Along with the likes of Freddie Mercury, Elton John, and Bob Marley, the Beatles are the next musical sensation to get a big-budget biopic, but that might be easier said than done. After all, how does one tell the story of four distinctly different personalities coming together to form what many consider the ultimate rock band?
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Sam Mendes, Oscar-winning director of films like James Bond’s Skyfall (2012) and 1917 (2019), recently announced that John, Paul, George, and Ringo aren’t just getting one massively marvelous Magical Mystery Tour but four individual films that tell their story. Moreover, the director has also secured the life story rights from both Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney and the families of John Lennon and George Harrison to ensure that the whole story is adapted for the big screen.
A Beatles Cinematic Universe?
As strange as it might sound, the Beatles getting their own four-picture deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment is a reality that many fans (including this writer) will scream “Yeah-Yeah-Yeah” for. The four mop-topped musical mavericks completely changed the face of the music industry and frankly deserve nothing less than a full-force cinematic escapade.
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The official descriptive statement from Deadline reads,
Mendes and [Sony Pictures Entertainment] will find their own lane in films about Paul, John, George and Ringo’s coming of age when they became global recording and film stars who made young girls swoon and left the quartet often running for their lives from pursuing crowds of fans. The band evolved from the loveable Mop Tops who sang blues-inspired love songs, to daring edgy artists who embraced hot button issues of the ’60s. After the breakup in 1970, each member faced the impossible task of living up to the band’s success. But all of them blazed paths in different directions, as solo artists with reams of No. 1 hit records, and by touching the culture in other ways…”
“Each faced adversity. Harrison was nearly killed in a stabbing attack when a man diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic broke into their home, his assault stopped by wife Olivia who incapacitated the attacker with a fireplace poker. Lennon was tragically shot dead returning to his Central Park residence The Dakota by another deranged fan. McCartney and Starr are still going strong. No matter where Mendes goes, the long and winding road features compelling narrative yarns.”
Moreover, the filmmakers have also been given the full blessing of both the surviving members of the band and their families, as well as the Beatles’ original record lable, Apple Corps Ltd.
When asked further, Variety shared the following statement from Mendes.
“I’m honored to be telling the story of the greatest rock band of all time, and excited to challenge the notion of what constitutes a trip to the movies…”
While the announced project is undoubtedly one for Beatles fans to look forward to, this isn’t their first trip to the movies in recent years. Previously, Disney+ and Hulu released The Beatles: Get Back from director Peter Jackson, as well as the musical film Yesterday from Danny Boyle in 2019.
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What will truly sell the “Beatles Cinematic Universe” is the amount of creative freedom Mendes supposedly will have in telling the band’s story. Not since Across the Universe (2007) have the fab four got the full fantastic treatment, and it will definitely be interesting to see what comes next for John, Paul, George, and Ringo.
At the time of writing, the films have no current release dates specified, but they certainly have the ingredients for a truly spectacular series as big as the four lads who inspired the overarching story. Until then, fans can only imagine what kind of Marvel-level cinematic universe Mendes has in store.
Are you a Beatles fan waiting for the band to get back to where they once belonged? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!