Dexter Fletcher on taking over for Bryan Singer on Bohemian Rhapsody

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

After Bryan Singer was fired as the director of BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY, Dexter Fletcher (EDDIE THE EAGLE) stepped in to replace him and complete the Freddie Mercury biopic. We haven't heard all that much of the project since then, but audiences at CinemaCon, including our own Editor-in-Chief Paul Shirey, got a look at the first trailer for the film and it seems that it's looking as though it will be one "hell of a biopic." It's difficult enough to complete what began as someone else's vision, but Dexter Fletcher seems to have pulled it off and he recently spoke with IndieWire about what it was like to take over.

"It was an extraordinary set of circumstances," said Fletcher, but the director was the best choice for the project as he had once been slated to develop and direct the film himself several years ago. "We got quite far down the line with my version of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody,’ which unfortunately, never came to fruition," Fletcher said, but when 20th Century Fox came calling, he was ready.

They sort of said, ‘Look, this is a film that needs to be finished,’ and they trusted me with that responsibility. I came into the last few weeks of principal photography and editing and the bits and pieces like that. So I was lucky to have a really good input to something, but it’s really about watching what had been already created and being part of that. It wasn’t like changing and reinventing the wheel.

The director added that two complete acts had already been finished, so it was his job not to let it down. As for who will be credited as the director of BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY at the end of the day, that hasn't yet been revealed, but Dexter Fletcher doesn't think it's really important, saying, "I was just proud to be able to be a part of it and help complete what I think is a great film. That’s what I got involved for."

The official synopsis for BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY:

Bohemian Rhapsody is a foot-stomping celebration of Queen, their music and their extraordinary lead singer Freddie Mercury, who defied stereotypes and shattered convention to become one of the most beloved entertainers on the planet. The film traces the meteoric rise of the band through their iconic songs and revolutionary sound, their near-implosion as Mercury's lifestyle spirals out of control, and their triumphant reunion on the eve of Live Aid, where Mercury, facing a life-threatening illness, leads the band in one of the greatest performances in the history of rock music. In the process, cementing the legacy of a band that were always more like a family, and who continue to inspire outsiders, dreamers and music lovers to this day.

BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY is set for a November 2, 2018 release.