Sam Mendes’ Four Beatles Films to Be Produced with $400 Million Budget
According to CinemaDrame News Agency, director Sam Mendes is set to helm four Beatles films with a combined budget exceeding $400 million. Reporter Matt Belloni revealed that each of the four films will cost nearly $100 million for Sony Pictures, making this the riskiest undertaking of studio head Tom Rothman’s career.
An anonymous producer commented on Rothman: “He’ll be retiring in a few years, and perhaps now is the perfect time to make the Beatles films.”
Previously announced casting includes Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr. Rumors suggest that Anna Sawai will play Yoko Ono, Lennon’s wife, and Aimee Lou Wood will portray Pattie Boyd, Harrison’s wife.
Mendes will shoot the four films back-to-back over 15 months, using a Rashomon-style structure. Screenwriters Peter Straughan (Conclave), Jack Thorne (Adolescence), and Jez Butterworth (Ford v Ferrari) are writing three of the scripts, while the fourth is expected to be written by Krysty Wilson-Cairns (1917).
Josh Brolin recently revealed in an interview with Kevin McCarthy that Greig Fraser will serve as cinematographer for the films.
The four Beatles films are scheduled to release in spring 2028, within a short window of one another.
