Sam Mendes to direct biopic movie series of each Beatle member — over 50 years after their breakup

Members of The Beatles are getting their individual perspectives shown in an upcoming biopic film series directed by Sam Mendes.

A press release shared that the Fab Four members — John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr — will each be portrayed “from each band member’s point-of-view” in their own movie to “tell the astonishing story of the greatest band in history.”

For the first time since their breakup over 50 years ago, per AP News, surviving members McCartney and Starr, and the families of the late Lennon and Harrison, have granted their complete life and music rights to be used for the movie project.

“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,” stated Sam Mendes in the press release.

Details about the movie series

Sony Pictures Entertainment, according to The Hollywood Reporter, will finance and distribute the biopic series for an initial 2027 release. It’s currently unknown if the films will all air the same year or be rolled out to future years.

The film will be in cooperation alongside The Beatles brand and with Apple Corps Ltd.

Producer Pippa Harris shared on the press release, “To have The Beatles’ and Apple Corps’ blessing to do this is an immense privilege ... we can’t think of a more perfect home than Sony Pictures.”

Forbes shared that the British filmmaker, Mendes, has become a successful director nominated for three Academy Awards in 2020 for “1917” and winning one in 2000 for “American Beauty.”

Haven’t The Beatles been in recent projects?

The announced project is not the first time the band’s music and likeness has been used in media.

For instance, their iconic music catalog has been licensed for movies, theatrical productions and documentaries, among many, many more projects, per Forbes.

The Deseret News in 2019 reported Peter Jackson was directing a Beatles documentary outlining the band’s final album, “Let It Be,” which was then released in 2021 to the Disney+ streaming service.

Additionally, Deseret News covered two stories about the band releasing “Now and Then” in late-2023, and recently obtaining a Grammy award for their music video of “I’m Only Sleeping” — released back in 2022.

The surge of music biopics

Biopics of musical artists have become a popular phenomenon in the last decade.

Per AP News, the specific film genre has seen movies like “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “Elvis” become big box-office hits for their respective productions. And just this past weekend, “Bob Marley: One Love” became a number-one hit in theaters.

In addition, Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” from last year became the highest-grossing tour of all-time, reported Deseret News.

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Because of their financial successes, more and more biopics get announced for future release dates. As an example, Deseret News shared that artist Michael Jackson is getting his own biopic almost 20 years after his 2009 death.

Sony is hoping their biopic series can make an impact.

“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 Harris, per the press release.