Ringo Starr demanded script changes in Sam Mendes' Beatles biopic: ‘That's not how we were'
Ringo Starr, 84, recently revealed that he demanded script changes in filmmaker Sam Mendes' upcoming Beatles biopic about his life.
The 'Yellow Submarine' hitmaker opened up about the movie and how he spent two days offering 'extensive notes' to Mendes in an interview with The New York Times published Wednesday, July 2.
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9 Ringo Starr recently revealed that he demanded script changes in filmmaker Sam Mendes' upcoming Beatles biopic about his life.
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9 Starr opened up about the biopic, and how he spent two days offering 'extensive notes' to director Sam Mendes, in an interview with The New York Times published Wednesday.
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Starr said that most of his problems had to do with how his relationship with his first wife, Maureen Starkey Tigrett, was being portrayed.
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'He had a writer – very good writer, great reputation, and he wrote it great, but it had nothing to do with Maureen and I,' Starr explained. 'That's not how we were. I'd say, 'We would never do that.''
Starr and Tigrett married in 1965 at the height of Beatlemania. They welcomed three children together, including famous drummer Zak Starkey, between 1965 and 1970. The pair divorced in 1975 after 10 years of marriage.
9 'He had a writer – very good writer, great reputation, and he wrote it great, but it had nothing to do with Maureen and I,' Starr explained. 'That's not how we were. I'd say, 'We would never do that.''
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9 The 'Octopus's Garden' songwriter in July 2023.
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Although Starr admitted that he is now satisfied with how his relationship with his family will be depicted on the big screen, he still had some doubts about other aspects of the film, including its current April 2028 release date.
'But he'll do what he's doing,' Starr said. 'And I'll send him peace and love.'
Mendes, 59, revealed which actors will be portraying each Beatle in his 'The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event' biopic project earlier this year.
9 Mendes revealed earlier this year which actors would be portraying each Beatle in his 'The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event' biopic project.
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While 'Banshees of Inisherin' star Barry Keoghan, 32, will depict Starr, Paul Mescal has been cast as Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon and Joseph Quinn as George Harrison.
'We're not just making one film about the Beatles — we're making four,' Mendes said during the announcement at CinemaCon 2025 in March. 'Perhaps this is a chance to understand them a little more deeply.'
'There had to be a way to tell the epic story for a new generation,' the 'Skyfall' director added at the time. 'I can assure you there is still plenty left to explore and I think we found a way to do that.'
9 The Beatles at the height of Beatlemania in 1964.
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9 Barry Keoghan will depict Ringo Starr, and Paul Mescal has been cast as Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon and Joseph Quinn as George Harrison.
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Mendes plans to release each of the four separate biopics simultaneously to create what he calls 'the first binge-able theatrical experience.'
Besides announcing the main cast members, Mendes also revealed that writers Jez Butterworth ('Ford v Ferrari'), Peter Straughan ('Conclave') and Jack Thorne ('Adolescence') would pen the scripts for the four upcoming Beatles flicks.
Meanwhile, Starr previously said that he was 'excited' to see the films about himself and his three legendary former bandmates.
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9 Ringo Starr at the height of Beatlemania in 1964.
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9 'My job is to observe and kinda take in mannerisms and study him,' Keoghan said regarding how he is preparing to portray Ringo Starr. 'I want to humanize him and bring feelings to it and not just sort of imitate.'
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'My life as a lad, John's life, Paul's life, George's life, I mean, it must interact in some way,' he told People in March.
'There'll be Beatles in mine around when I joined, and there'll be Beatles in Paul's. We'll all be there,' Starr added. 'So I'm excited to see what he does with it.'
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As for Keoghan, he has reportedly been taking drum lessons to prepare for his role as the 'Octopus's Garden' singer.
'I met him at his house, and he played the drums for me,' the 'Saltburn' star said during 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' in May regarding a once-in-a-lifetime hangout with Starr. 'He asked me to play, but I wasn't playing the drums for Ringo.'
'My job is to observe and kinda take in mannerisms and study him,' Keoghan added. 'I want to humanize him and bring feelings to it and not just sort of imitate.'
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When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Ringo Starr has apparently already had a word with Sam Mendes and caused some rewriting to the upcoming Beatles' biopics. The director met his subject recently and over two days the pair worked on the scripts for the drummer's individual movie, which like the others, is due to hit cinemas in April 2028. According to the New York Times, Ringo 'offered extensive notes' to Mendes to make sure that the movie provides an accurate portrayal of his early life and his first marriage to Maureen Starkey. 'He had a writer - very good writer, great reputation, and he wrote it great, but it had nothing to do with Maureen and I,' says Starr. 'That's not how we were. I'd say, 'We would never do that.'' Nevertheless, both Ringo and Mendes are now said to be satisfied with the rewrite. 'He'll do what he's doing,' Starr said of the director, 'and I'll send him peace and love.' Elsewhere in the New York Times interview, the drummer, who turns 85 this coming Monday, says he still feels like he's in his 20s when he looks in the mirror. "It blows me away,' he reflects. 'I look in the mirror and I'm 24. I never got older than 24," he told the NYT, adding to himself, "But guess what? You did." There's no doubt Ringo does look good for a man in his mid 80s, but 24? Come on. Anyway, he puts it all down to a lifetime playing drums: "I love what I'm doing. When I first started... my mother would come to the gigs. She would always say, 'You know, son, I always feel you're at your happiest when you're playing your drums'. So she noticed. And I do."
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