Sam Mendes’ Beatles films may not make 2027 release date

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Cameras are set to roll this year on Sam Mendes’ films about The Beatles. A delay is being predicted even at this stage, though.


Whether you’re a die-hard fan of The Beatles or not, the sheer ambition and audacity of Sam Mendes’ undertaking is undeniably impressive. He’s assembling an impressive raft of talent, tackling the lives and careers of perhaps the biggest band of the 20th Century and planning to release four films at the same time.

Before a frame of film has even been shot, however, Life & Style is claiming to have insider knowledge which states that Mendes’ four films have no chance of making their publicised release in 2027. As it stands, 2028 is supposedly the year that has already been decided internally, even though the official public messaging is still maintaining that we will see the films the year after next (possibly even on the same day).

Casting hasn’t been made official yet, but the Beatles line-up is believed to be: Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Charlie Rowe as George Harrison and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr.

The outlet doesn’t reveal its source but seems confident in its claims, with Mendes also recently saying that the films would be coming in “mid-2028” (per World Of Reel) which certainly adds weight to story.

Here’s the insider quote from the outlet: “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 organisation, 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.”

Read more: The Beatles | Why game developers love the Fab Four

The outlet doesn’t have a track record of obtaining such scoops, but making shooting and editing four films in two years does seem like quite a tall order. However, this is the same Sam Mendes who made Spectre on a incredibly tight timeline, producing a polished-looking film along the way, (even it that film isn’t without its problems in other areas). You can hear all about that on this episode of the FIlm Stories Podcast.

Ultimately, a delay might be the best thing for the project given the scale of its ambitions. Mendes is said to be using four different screenwriters, including 1917's Krsyty Wilson Cairns and Conclave's Peter Straughan, so even the writing process for, with its Rashomon-style recounting of the same event from four perspectives, must be a huge undertaking.

We’ll bring you more as we hear it.

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