Sony‘s long-awaited Beatles movie biopic plans are finally coming together.
Director Sam Mendes took the stage at CinemaCon in Las Vegas to reveal the cast for the features and said that all four films are set for theatrical release in April 2028. The surprising plans to make four films — one for each member of the famed band — were first announced last year.
Drumroll, please: Mendes also brought the cast onstage. Set to star in the films are Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr. Each of the four movies will focus on one of the members of the Fab Four.
“We’re not just making one film about the Beatles — we’re making four,” Mendes said. “Perhaps this is a chance to understand them a little more deeply.”
Mendes claimed that Sony film boss Tom Rothman called the projects “the first binge-able theatrical experience.” After hitting the stage, all four actors recited lyrics from the band’s song “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” and then took a Beatles-style synchronized bow.
The movie’s news closed out Sony’s presentation with a true mic-drop moment that left the auditorium stunned by the release date news and then, of course, by the surprise visits from the four stars.
“You have to match the boldness of the idea with a bold release strategy,” Rothman told The Hollywood Reporter last year about the project that earned the Oscar-winning director a coveted signoff from the group’s selective label Apple Corps. “There hasn’t been an enterprise like this before, and you can’t think about it in traditional releasing terms.”
Producing the films for Neal Street Productions are Mendes, Pippa Harris and Julie Pastor.
The Beatles are the biggest-selling music act of all time, per the RIAA, and Sony is hoping to tap into that devoted fan base with the unique release strategy.
CinemaCon is the annual event for exhibitors and Hollywood studios that runs this year from March 31 to April 3. It is presented by Cinema United (formerly the National Association of Theater Owners).
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