Fab four: 'American Beauty' director to helm four Beatles' biopics

LONDON:

The fab four are back, with each member of the iconic Beatles to be immortalized in their own big screen biopic, all directed by Sam Mendes, Sony Pictures said on Tuesday.

"The project marks the first time (Beatles' label) Apple Corps Ltd and The Beatles - Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and the families of John Lennon and George Harrison – have granted full life story and music rights for a scripted film," the studio said in a statement.

"We intend this to be a uniquely thrilling and epic cinematic experience: four films, told from four different perspectives which tell a single story about the most celebrated band of all time," said Pippa Harris, who will codirect alongside Mendes. The films are expected to come out in 2027.

In April 1970, six months after the release of the "Abbey Road" album and a month before "Let It Be," the members of the hit British band announced their separation.

The ten-year collaboration between McCartney, Lennon, Harrison and Starr resulted in 14 best-selling albums, almost a billion records sold and several films. But since the breakup, the band members' families had not given their blessing to The Beatles' story being told on the silver screen.

Last autumn, with the help of artificial intelligence, a new song, "Now and Then" - originally recorded four decades ago as a demo - was produced and released, topping the British charts.

The Beatles have also been the subject of numerous documentaries, such as The Beatles: Get Back series directed by Peter Jackson, which shines a positive light on the lead-up to their split. Mendes, whose directorial credits include American Beauty and James Bond films Skyfall and Spectre, said he was "honoured to be telling the story of the greatest rock band of all time."

In recent years, there has been a proliferation of documentaries and biopics on streaming platforms and in cinemas retracing legendary stories from the world of music.

"Bohemian Rhapsody" tells the story of Queen, while "Elvis" chronicles Elvis Presley's tumultuous life, "Tina" immortalises Tina Turner and "Rocketman" recounts how Elton John conquered the world of pop.

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