Sam Mendes is set to tell The Beatles’ story with four interconnected films about each member

Last Updated on February 21, 2024

When it comes to arguably the biggest acts in rock music history, how does one go about making a film adaptation that lives up to the legend? The King of Rock ‘N’ Roll, Elvis Presley, would get his own flashy, epic treatment courtesy of Baz Luhrmann’s visual flair in 2022. But for a band like The Beatles, how do you truly capture the journey in a feature film? Director Sam Mendes has the answer. You do four feature films. Deadline has the breaking story that the Skyfall, Spectre and American Beauty director will audaciously attempt to cover the story of The Beatles with four films, which will each concentrate on a member of the band.

Mendes’ vision involves having each movie tell the story from each Beatle’s point of view and will interconnect with the other films. The 1917 director conceived of this grand idea and had pitched it to Hollywood, but it was Tom Rothman and Elizabeth Gabler at Sony Pictures who would end up winning the chance to take on this massive project. Mendes spoke with Deadline about the deal coming together, “We went out to L.A. just before Christmas to pitch the project, and it’s fair to say we were met with universal enthusiasm. The reason Sony stood out from competing offers was down to Tom and Elizabeth’s passion for the idea, and commitment to propelling these films theatrically in an innovative and exciting way.”

Sam Mendes’ production company, Neal Street Productions, will be partnering up with Sony Pictures Entertainment for the films, and Mendes will be on board as the director of all four. According to Deadline, this will be marking the first time Apple Corps Ltd. and Beatles members – Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, as well as the families of John Lennon and George Harrison – have granted the full life story and music rights for a scripted film.

Neal Street Production partner Pippa Harris commented, “This project springs from an idea of Sam’s which he had over a year ago, and it’s a testament to his creative brilliance and powers of persuasion that Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Sean Lennon and Olivia Harrison responded with such warmth and enthusiasm as soon as he spoke with them. […] To have The Beatles’ and Apple Corps’ blessing to do this is an immense privilege. From our first meeting with Tom Rothman and Elizabeth Gabler, it was clear that they shared both our passion and ambition for this project, and we can’t think of a more perfect home than Sony Pictures.”