And so it goes
It was just announced that Billy Joel was to be the subject of a new musical biopic, as the genre seems to have picked up in recent years. The recent reports had said that John Ottman is directing a feature film about Joel’s formative years. The project, titled Billy & Me, is currently in development, with production slated for this fall in Winnipeg, Canada, and New York. Ottman’s resume is an interesting one, as it is spread across different concentrations like editing Bohemian Rhapsody and composing for Michael. Meanwhile, his directing credits include Urban Legends: Final Cut and an episode of Star Trek: Discovery.
Billy & Me aims to tell the origin story of Joel before he hit the big time, significantly before “Piano Man,” the 1973 song that launched the ivory tickler’s stardom. The biopic is told through the eyes of Joel’s first manager, Irwin Mazur, who discovered the singer in 1966, signed him in 1970, and oversaw his career up to his breakthrough deal with Columbia in 1972.
Joel starts a fire
The production has secured Mazur’s exclusive life rights, as well as those of Joel’s longtime friend, drummer and video director Jon Small, who is also on board as a consultant, co-executive producer and second unit director. However, Joel himself has not authorized this film about him and he will reportedly not allow his library to be used on the film.
According to People, a rep for Joel issued a statement that said,
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.”
The statement continued to say that the Grammy winner “has not authorized or supported this project in any capacity, and any attempt to move forward without it would be both legally and professionally misguided.”
Joel did have an authorized documentary about him for Billy Joel: And So It Goes and the musician was still uneasy about it, despite giving the project access to his life. He told People when it was released, “I’ve resisted this kind of thing for so long. I’m sick of talking about myself. Some of the stupid stuff I did, that’s painful to talk about. [But] they asked me for some thematic guidance. I said, ‘Just tell the truth.’ ”
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