The Walt Disney Studios has acquired the worldwide distribution rights to acclaimed filmmaker Peter Jackson’s previously announced Beatles documentary Get Back , which will release in September.
The film will showcase the warmth, camaraderie and humour of the making of the legendary band’s studio album, Let It Be, and their final live concert as a group, the iconic rooftop performance on London’s Savile Row.
The Beatles: Get Back will be released by The Walt Disney Studios in the US and Canada on September 4, additional details and dates for the film’s global release to follow. The announcement was made on March 11 by Robert A. Iger, Executive Chairman, The Walt Disney Company, at Disney’s annual meeting of shareholders.
“No band has had the kind of impact on the world that The Beatles have had, and The Beatles: Get Back is a front-row seat to the inner workings of these genius creators at a seminal moment in music history, with spectacularly restored footage that looks like it was shot yesterday,” said Iger, adding: “I’m a huge fan myself, so I could not be happier that Disney is able to share Peter Jackson’s stunning documentary with global audiences in September.”
The Beatles: Get Back will be presented by The Walt Disney Studios in association with Apple Corps Ltd. and WingNut Films Productions Ltd.
Compiled from over 55 hours of unseen footage, filmed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg in 1969, and 140 hours of mostly unheard audio recordings from the Let It Be album sessions, The Beatles: Get Back is directed by Jackson and produced by Jackson, Clare Olssen and Jonathan Clyde, with Ken Kamins and Apple Corps’ Jeff Jones serving as executive producers.
The music in the film will be mixed by Giles Martin and Sam Okell at Abbey Road Studios in London. With the restoration behind it, The Beatles: Get Back will create a vivid, joyful and immersive experience for audiences.
Talking about the film, Peter Jackson said: “Working on this project has been a joyous discovery. I’ve been privileged to be a fly on the wall while the greatest band of all time works, plays and creates masterpieces. I’m thrilled that Disney have stepped up as our distributor. There’s no one better to have our movie seen by the greatest number of people.”
To this, McCartney added: “I am really happy that Peter has delved into our archives to make a film that shows the truth about The Beatles recording together. The friendship and love between us comes over and reminds me of what a crazily beautiful time we had.”
Ringo Starr shared: “I’m really looking forward to this film. Peter is great and it was so cool looking at all this footage. There was hours and hours of us just laughing and playing music, not at all like the version that came out. There was a lot of joy and I think Peter will show that. I think this version will be a lot more peace and loving, like we really were.”
The Beatles: Get Back features the footage of the band at work in the studio, capturing John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr as they create their now-classic songs from scratch, laughing, bantering and playing to the camera.
A fully restored version of the original Let It Be film will be made available at a later date.
