The cast for Sam Mendes’ ‘Beatles’ movies seems to be locked: Barry Keoghan (Ringo Starr), Paul Mescal (Paul McCartney), Harris Dickinson (John Lennon), and Joseph Quinn (George Harrison).
Now that casting is out of the way, what’s next? A mid-2025 production is being eyed to shoot all four films back-to-back. An ambitious undertaking, to make four separate theatrical films, one on each members of The Beatles, and release all four titles on the same day in 2027. Is that even feasible?
Some cracks are starting to show. Mendes recently stated that he was going to be busy making these four Beatles movies until “mid-2028.” Aren’t they supposed to be released in 2027? Apparently, that might not be the case. Apple’s official statement said 2027.
An “insider” is now telling Life & Style that “almost nobody” in the industry actually believes that Mendes’ Beatles movies will be released in 2027:
This will be an exhaustive process for both of those guys just to get things right. But the massive question hanging over this project is how long it will really take […] Almost nobody in town believes that is really possible, no matter how calm and reassuring Sam Mendes is about his plan. Yes, Sam has the official backing of The Beatles organization, but we have to be real here: this project is going to take at least four years to finish, if not more, because each of the cast members figures so heavily in each other’s films.
Mendes must surely be having sleepless nights over this project. He’s really made things as complicated as possible, in all departments, but especially in the way he wants these stories to be told.
Mendes hired four different screenwriters to pen each of the four films, including Peter Straughan (“Conclave”) and Krsyty Wilson Cairns (“1917”). Straughan compared the storytelling to “Rashomon,” pointing out that there would be “certain famous scenes from their lives,” but told from a different point of view.
It should be noted that this is the first time that Apple Corps. and The Beatles have granted full life story and music rights for a scripted film on the band. Sony chief Tom Rothman stated that all four films would be released in 2027. There’s also been a rumor that Mendes regular Roger Deakins, 75, was asked to be cinematographer. Suffice to say, and despite the promised 2025 shooting date, we seem to still be in the very early stages when it comes to this project.