By Isabelle Casey
Copyright hellomagazine
Paul Mescal, Barry Keoghan, Joseph Quinn and Harris Dickinson made headlines when they were announced as the ‘fab four’ starring in the upcoming Beatles biopics directed by Sam Mendes, and now James Norton is the latest star to have signed up to the new project. The Happy Valley actor, 40, has confirmed the news he is set to play the band’s famous manager Brian Epstein. Taking to his Instagram account, the House of Guinness star shared an article by Deadline of his rumoured part in the four-part film series, and simply captioned the post: “Brian,” alongside a red love heart emoji.
Fans of James rejoiced at the news, taking to the comments section of the update. “OMG!!!! This is so exciting!!!” one penned. A second added: “Life continues to get better.” Meanwhile, a third penned: “Oh yes, absolutely.” As well as the article, James shared a black and white photograph of the famed manager, looking an awful lot like him, as well as a throwback photo of Brian sitting with all the Beatles. It has been a non-stop time for the British actor who most recently has starred in the hit Netflix show, House of Guinness. News of the A-list cast fronting the films – who are also known on social media as the world’s internet boyfriends – came in March, when Paul, Barry, Joseph and Harris all took to the stage at during Sony’s presentation at CinemaCon in Las Vegas.
What is the vision of the films?
At the event, director Sam said: “Each one is told from the particular perspective of just one of the guys,” Sir Sam told the event. “They intersect in different ways – sometimes overlapping, sometimes not. They’re four very different human beings. Perhaps this is a chance to understand them a little more deeply. But together, all four films will tell the story of the greatest band in history. I just felt the story of the band was too huge to fit into a single movie, and that turning it into a TV mini-series just somehow didn’t feel right.”
The films are expected to be released around the same time, making it a cinematic series that’s never been done before.
Who are playing the Beatles’ wives?
With James being the latest name to be announced, you may be wondering who will be playing the wives of the former boy band members, but one name that has been rumoured is Saoirse Ronan, who Deadline said has signed a contract to play Linda McCartney alongside fellow Irish actor Paul Mescal.
The pair are incredibly close friends in real life and previously played opposite each other as husband and wife in Foe, so no doubt the duo will make for a fabulous on-screen match. Another name that has been floated is Sex Education star Aimee Lou-Wood who has been rumoured to play Pattie Boyd alongside Joseph Quinn’s George Harrison. Meanwhile, Shogun star Anna Sawai is reportedly in line to play Yoko Ono alongside Harris Dickinson’s John Lennon.
How are the boys preparing for the movie?
While no doubt preparations for their roles are well underway, Saltburn star Barry opened up about how he is preparing to take on the role of drummer Ringo, explaining that he went to his house to study him.
“I met Ringo the other day, in his house. I didn’t just meet him at his house, had to go up, and he let me in,” the Irish actor told chat show host Jimmy Kimmel on Jimmy Kimmel Live!: “I met him at his house and he played the drums for me. He asked me to play, but I wasn’t playing the drums for Ringo. It was sort of just one of those moments where you’re just in awe and you’re just frozen.”
Asked if he was watching Sir Ringo to see what he could absorb, Barry said: “Yes, I was, and I said it to him, and when I was talking to him I couldn’t look at him. I was nervous, like right now, he’s like,’You can look at me.’ And it was just, again, you’re (I’m) playing Ringo Starr. My job is to observe and take in all kind of mannerisms and, you know, studying (him). I want to humanise him, bring feelings to it. And not just sort of imitate.”