The Beatles are one of the most successful bands in the world. Adapting the lives of the Fab Four to the big screen is no small feat, but filmmaker Sam Mendes promises a cinematic universe with his upcoming four films. And these movies won't be without some much-needed involvement from the surviving members.
Ringo Starr, drumming icon and rock legend, turns 85 today, and recently shared a progress update on the script for one of the four biopics from Mendes. While brief, it shows just how revealing these four films are likely to be.
Per The New York Times, both Mendes and Barry Keoghan, the actor who will portray Starr, sat down with the drummer to go over the script. “He had a writer — very good writer, great reputation, and he wrote it great, but it had nothing to do with [late wife] Maureen [Starkey Tigrett] and I,” Starr recalled. “That’s not how we were. I’d say, ‘We would never do that.’”
As such, Starr and Mendes came together to create a more accurate depiction of the rock star's life, particularly his relationship with his first wife. With so many contemporary musical biopics taking creative liberties with their source material (looking at you, Elvis), it's refreshing to see one that commits to accuracy by consulting surviving band members, similar to A Complete Unknown.
Although it's been done a few times, creating a single biopic about The Beatles is challenging enough. However, a cinematic universe featuring the Fab Four is perhaps the most ambitious Beatles project since Cirque du Soleil's Love.
The confirmed cast for Mendes' films includes Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, and Keoghan as Starr. Although many hardcore Beatlemaniacs (this writer included) have questioned the director's casting choices, it appears that the correct steps are being taken to ensure the most authentic story is brought to the screen.
Speaking as a massive Beatles fan, I'm happy to see the Fab Four getting a true, large-form cinematic treatment—especially since the Yellow Submarine remake with Disney fell through. Hopefully, the performances will speak for themselves, and the script will bring the band's story to life in the best possible way.
The Beatles biopics are scheduled for release beginning in April 2028.