With news that Aaron Taylor-Johnson is (apparently) lined up to play James Bond, along with the recent confirmation of four upcoming Beatles biopics, the 2009 John Lennon biopic Nowhere Boy, one of Taylor-Johnson’s first roles, will come into new focus. The film depicts John Lennon’s teenage years and the early evolution from The Quarrymen to the formation of The Beatles, as well as the late musician’s close relationship with his aunt, Mimi Smith, after his mother’s sudden death after being struck by a car outside their home.
As the indie British drama film is set between 1955 and 1960, the film does not feature Beatles drummer Ringo Starr (born Richard Starkey), as he joined the group in 1962. As guitarist George Harrison passed away in 2001, Beatles co-founder and bassist Paul McCartney, one half of the songwriting partnership Lennon-McCartney, was one the sole living subjects of the film by the time of its release.
McCartney was played by actor Thomas Brodie-Sangster, and the film depicted Lennon and McCartney’s early relationship as a close and similarly-minded one — but also one that could often be fraught and tense, as they battled for dominance in their different musical visions. As the main point of authority on the accuracy of the film’s depiction of Beatles history, the now 82-year-old music legend is one source of approval director Sam Taylor-Johnson (now wife of Aaron Taylor-Johnson) would have keenly sought after.
What did Paul McCartney think of the Beatle biopic Nowhere Boy?
According to reports surrounding the film during its 2009 release, Paul McCartney allegedly received a prospective script for the film, and asked Sam Taylor-Johnson to make several revisions, especially regarding Lennon’s beloved Aunt Mimi. The Daily Mail claimed at the time that in recalling reading the initial script, McCartney told the tabloid “I said ‘Sam, this isn’t true. Aunt Mimi was not cruel. She was mock strict. But she was a good heart who loved John madly.'”
“She did have an abrasive nature, but there’s so much love in that woman.”
The paper then alleged that McCartney and Taylor-Johnson “fell out again over other aspects of the script” and declined an invitation to the premiere. In a 2010 Telegraph interview, McCartney claimed “I haven’t actually seen it, but I hear I’m OK in it. But you know what I’m slightly peeved about? My character, my actor, is shorter than John!”
“And I don’t like that! I’m the same size as John, please. Put John in a trench! Or put me in platforms!”
Although Paul sounds pretty cordial on the matter, perhaps his choice not to watch the film speaks volumes about how accurate he believes the film to be, as does his correspondence with the film’s director. The now-Sir Paul McCartney could be forgiven for any potential hostility towards the biopic, as he has been outspoken about his grief for his former bandmate, who was assassinated in New York City in 1980, aged just 40 – in particular, his regrets over not telling Lennon that he “loved” him.
As for any living subject of a biopic, portrayals of personal events — especially those involving people who are no longer with us — can be a highly sensitive matter. As of March 2024, the star has not revealed his reaction to his upcoming portrayal in the Sam Mendes-directed biopics, in which he will have one entirely dedicated to his time in history’s most successful musical act.