Billy JoelOn Tuesday (19 May), it was reported that a biopic about Billy Joel’s formative years, Billy & Me, was in the works. But the Piano Man himself has denounced the project, calling it “both legally and professionally misguided.”
The film is set to be directed by John Ottman, who was the editor on the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody and on one of this year’s biggest films, Michael, Consequence of Sound reports. Adam Ripp is attached as the movie’s writer.
Billy & Me is reportedly told through the perspective of the musician’s first manager, Irwin Mazur, who discovered Joel in the mid-’60s and signed him in 1970. Mazur oversaw Joel’s whirlwind career until he penned a major deal with Columbia Records in 1972.
Since the film announcement was made, a representative for Joel has claimed that the singer has been in discussions with the filmmakers for “several years” and said they don’t have his rights for the movie, The Hollywood Reporter notes.
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“Since 2021, the parties involved have been officially notified that they do not possess Billy Joel’s life rights and will not be able to secure the music rights required for this project,” a representative for Joel said. “Billy Joel has not authorised or supported this project in any capacity, and any attempt to move forward without it would be both legally and professionally misguided.”
Ripp has since discussed the project with The Hollywood Reporter, explaining that Billy & Me isn’t being made in the style of a “traditional” biopic, “nor is it dependent on Billy Joel’s original music catalogue.”
Ripp added that at no point has the filmmaking team claimed to “control or possess rights to Billy Joel’s original songs, nor has this film ever been conceived around the use of his hit catalogue.” Instead, he says it’s being crafted as an “intimate origin story.”
The filmmaking team reportedly “hold the exclusive life rights to Irwin Mazur,” as well as the “life rights” to the singer’s lifelong best friend and original drummer, Jon Small, Ripp said. Small is also on board as the film’s consultant, co-executive producer, and second unit director.
“Jon personally consulted on the screenplay and fully endorses the film as someone who lived through and experienced the events portrayed firsthand,” Ripp continued.
“We have tremendous respect for Billy Joel and his extraordinary legacy. Our intention has always been to tell an honest, heartfelt story about the early years of a young artist before the world knew his name.”
Last year, a two-part documentary about Billy Joel, titled And So It Goes, premiered on HBO. The series explored the “love, loss and personal struggles that fuel his storytelling” and featured “never-before-seen performances, home movies, personal photographs, and one-on-one interviews.”
