With its film “Bob Marley: One Love” surpassing “Madame Teia” at the box office, Paramount Pictures has decided to prioritize another biopic about a popular band and is negotiating with an A-list director to lead the project. While the deal hasn’t been finalized, Deadline says Ridley Scott is in talks to direct a Bee Gees movie.
If he closes the deal, it will be the first musical biopic of the director, known for epic and science fiction films, but who has recently tried his hand at biographical dramas with mixed results in “All the Money in the World” (2017), “The House by Gucci” (2021) and “Napoleone” (2023). He is currently working on “Gladiator 2,” which will hit theaters in November.
Tumultuous behind the scenes
Scott is already the fourth option to direct the shoot. Last December, Paramount reportedly hired Lorene Scafaria (“Hustlers”) to replace John Carney (“One Time”), who cited scheduling conflicts to abandon the project. But Carney was already the replacement for Kenneth Branagh (winner of the 2020 Oscar for best original screenplay for “Belfast”), who also left the production with the excuse of his commitments.
Rumors behind the scenes claim that the film is running into difficulties with those responsible for the band’s estate, who are trying to control all aspects of the production. But Deadline’s sources deny this information, without however providing another explanation for so many changes.
Production and screenplay
The production team, led by Graham King, is the same as the award-winning “Bohemian Rhapsody”, which had the constant supervision of musicians from the band Queen. In the new film, the person who follows the project closely is Barry Gibb, the last of the band’s three brothers still alive – after the deaths of Maurice in 2003 and Robin in 2012.
The most recent script was written by John Logan (“007 – Operation Skyfall”) and would show the humble beginnings of brothers Barry, Maurice and Robin Gibb in Australia in the 1960s, following their journey to becoming a global pop phenomenon with the successful soundtrack of the 1977 film “Saturday Night Fever”.
Source: Terra
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
