From Whitney Houston to Elvis, there is no shortage of iconic singers who inspire sweeping films that dramatize their life stories. No matter the genre, cinematic features have captured the careers of the King of Rock and Roll Elvis Presley to country singer Jonny Cash. Most recently, Back to Black (2024) launched in theaters to capture the life and musical career of Amy Winehouse.
Still other films in the works will add to the canon of singer biography movies, like Timothée Chalamet’s upcoming portrayal of Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown and nephew to Jaafar Jackson’s portrayal of his uncle the late Michael Jackson in Michael.
We’ve compiled a list of music-centric biopics available to stream should the urge overcome viewers.
Photo: Sony Pictures Entertainment /Courtesy Everett Collection
Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody (2022)
Naomi Ackie embodied singer Whitney Houston in Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody.
Still other films in the works will add to the canon of singer biography movies, like Timothée Chalamet’s upcoming portrayal of Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown and nephew to Jaafar Jackson’s portrayal of his uncle the late Michael Jackson in Michael.
We’ve compiled a list of music-centric biopics available to stream should the urge overcome viewers.
Photo: Sony Pictures Entertainment /Courtesy Everett Collection
Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody (2022)
Naomi Ackie embodied singer Whitney Houston in Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody.
- 5/22/2024
- by Dessi Gomez
- Deadline Film + TV
Walt Disney Studios has had a pretty abysmal year at the international box office in 2023. Between Ant-Man: Quantumania, The Little Mermaid, Elemental, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and perhaps most disappointing, The Marvels, the typically successful movie studio has lost an ungodly amount of money by producing overly expensive feature films that failed to resonate among the masses and earn back their financial investments. If the studio isn’t careful and the trend continues, Disney could break another record for the all-time biggest box-office bomb on record.
Speaking of which, what would your answer be if you had to guess Disney’s most notorious financial flop of all time? Well, up until recently, the correct response would have been John Carter, the disastrous 2012 adaptation of Edgar Rice Boroughs’ A Princes of Mars. However, after tallying up the receipts in 2023, Disney’s most infamous box office failure now belongs to The Lone Ranger,...
Speaking of which, what would your answer be if you had to guess Disney’s most notorious financial flop of all time? Well, up until recently, the correct response would have been John Carter, the disastrous 2012 adaptation of Edgar Rice Boroughs’ A Princes of Mars. However, after tallying up the receipts in 2023, Disney’s most infamous box office failure now belongs to The Lone Ranger,...
- 1/17/2024
- by Jake Dee
- JoBlo.com
1996: Nathan Hastings died on The Young and the Restless.
1996: Frankie Frame was murdered on Another World.
1996: Gh's Jason and Robin arrived in Montauk on Stone's birthday.
2013: The series finale of One Life to Live aired online."The best prophet of the future is the past."
― Lord Byron
"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.
On this date in...
1929: NBC Blue network broadcast Amos 'n' Andy, starring Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll, for the first time. The show ran as a nightly radio serial from 1928 (starting at local Wmaq) until 1943, then as a weekly situation comedy from 1943 to 1955.
1953: On Search for Tomorrow, Arthur Tate (Terry O'Sullivan) told Nathan Walsh...
1996: Frankie Frame was murdered on Another World.
1996: Gh's Jason and Robin arrived in Montauk on Stone's birthday.
2013: The series finale of One Life to Live aired online."The best prophet of the future is the past."
― Lord Byron
"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.
On this date in...
1929: NBC Blue network broadcast Amos 'n' Andy, starring Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll, for the first time. The show ran as a nightly radio serial from 1928 (starting at local Wmaq) until 1943, then as a weekly situation comedy from 1943 to 1955.
1953: On Search for Tomorrow, Arthur Tate (Terry O'Sullivan) told Nathan Walsh...
- 8/26/2019
- by Roger Newcomb
- We Love Soaps
Mia Wasikowska was born on October 25, 1989 in Canberra, Australia (Mia Wasikowska age: 29). Her parents, John Reid and Marzena Wasikowska, are photographers and raised Mia and her siblings Dan, Jess and Kai in Canberra. Wasikowska attended Cook and Ainslie Primary Schools as well as Canberra High School. She completed her education at the […]
The post Mia Wasikowska Bio: In Her Own Words – Video Exclusive, News, Photos appeared first on uInterview.
The post Mia Wasikowska Bio: In Her Own Words – Video Exclusive, News, Photos appeared first on uInterview.
- 8/12/2019
- by Jen Curran
- Uinterview
The comparisons drawn between Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody were inevitable, given how closely the pair of high-profile biopics were released. And, to be fair, there are a lot of similarities between the films, which follow the evolutions of Elton John and Queen's Freddie Mercury - they both feature tons of legendary hit songs, dive into the darker side of stardom, and explore the sexuality of both musical icons (though one accomplishes the latter far better than the other). On top of all that, Rocketman director Dexter Fletcher also had a hand in directing Bohemian Rhapsody after Bryan Singer dropped out, and he had yet another way of connecting the two films in the works.
Not only do each of the films take place during a similar span of time in the '70s and '80s, but they also prominently feature the real-life character of John Reid, who served as...
Not only do each of the films take place during a similar span of time in the '70s and '80s, but they also prominently feature the real-life character of John Reid, who served as...
- 6/18/2019
- by Quinn Keaney
- Popsugar.com
Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody director Dexter Fletcher recently talked a little bit about his Elton John biopic and he revealed that there was a point during the development where they wanted to bring Rami Malek back to reprise his role as Freddie Mercury for a scene in the film.
Here’s the explanation from Fletcher and why it ultimately didn’t happen:
“There was an idea I had one point, where Elton’s in a restaurant with his mother. I thought John Reid and Freddie could be at another table and they wave at each other! That would have been amazing, [but] it didn’t come to pass. It would’ve been a little too knowing…I’m not looking to set out to make a cinematic universe!”
John and Mercury definitely knew each other and hung out. The two musical talents were actually managed by the same person… John Reid.
Here’s the explanation from Fletcher and why it ultimately didn’t happen:
“There was an idea I had one point, where Elton’s in a restaurant with his mother. I thought John Reid and Freddie could be at another table and they wave at each other! That would have been amazing, [but] it didn’t come to pass. It would’ve been a little too knowing…I’m not looking to set out to make a cinematic universe!”
John and Mercury definitely knew each other and hung out. The two musical talents were actually managed by the same person… John Reid.
- 6/15/2019
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
Dexter Fletcher, who directed Rocketman and briefly pinch-hit on Bohemian Rhapsody after the departure of Bryan Singer, considered but dismissed a brief crossover appearance in the Elton John biopic by the Freddie Mercury biopic star Rami Malek.
In an interview with the Gay Star News site, Fletcher said a crossover appearance would have been “a little too knowing.”
“There was an idea I had [at] one point, where Elton’s in a restaurant with his mother,” Fletcher said. “I thought John Reid and Freddie could be at another table and they wave at each other!” the director said of the movie starring Taron Egerton as Elton John. “That would have been amazing, [but] it didn’t come to pass. It would’ve been a little too knowing. I’m not looking to set out to make a cinematic universe!”
Both films include the character of John Reid, long-ago manager of Elton John and Mercury’s band Queen.
In an interview with the Gay Star News site, Fletcher said a crossover appearance would have been “a little too knowing.”
“There was an idea I had [at] one point, where Elton’s in a restaurant with his mother,” Fletcher said. “I thought John Reid and Freddie could be at another table and they wave at each other!” the director said of the movie starring Taron Egerton as Elton John. “That would have been amazing, [but] it didn’t come to pass. It would’ve been a little too knowing. I’m not looking to set out to make a cinematic universe!”
Both films include the character of John Reid, long-ago manager of Elton John and Mercury’s band Queen.
- 6/12/2019
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Rocketman may be focused on the life of Elton John, but it came close to featuring a surprise cameo from yet another famous rocker.
Both Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody were directed by Dexter Fletcher, and he revealed in a new interview that he nearly collided cinematic universes by calling on actor Rami Malek to reprise his role as Freddie Mercury in Rocketman.
The idea that John and Mercury would cross paths isn’t a stretch — both were managed by John Reid, played in Rhapsody by Aidan Gillen, and by Richard Madden in Rocketman.
“There was an idea I had at one point,...
Both Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody were directed by Dexter Fletcher, and he revealed in a new interview that he nearly collided cinematic universes by calling on actor Rami Malek to reprise his role as Freddie Mercury in Rocketman.
The idea that John and Mercury would cross paths isn’t a stretch — both were managed by John Reid, played in Rhapsody by Aidan Gillen, and by Richard Madden in Rocketman.
“There was an idea I had at one point,...
- 6/12/2019
- by Rachel DeSantis
- PEOPLE.com
The Elton John musical biopic “Rocketman” has received endless comparisons to four-time Oscar winner “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and it turns out the two movies could have been directly related had director Dexter Fletcher gone through with an idea to have Rami Malek reprise his role of Freddie Mercury in “Rocketman” opposite Taron Egerton’s John. Fletcher revealed the idea during an interview with Gay Star News (via /Film).
“There was an idea I had one point, where Elton’s in a restaurant with his mother,” Fletcher said. “I thought John Reid and Freddie could be at another table and they wave at each other! That would have been amazing, [but] it didn’t come to pass. It would’ve been a little too knowing. I’m not looking to set out to make a cinematic universe!”
John Reid managed both Elton John and Queen, so it wouldn’t have been too out...
“There was an idea I had one point, where Elton’s in a restaurant with his mother,” Fletcher said. “I thought John Reid and Freddie could be at another table and they wave at each other! That would have been amazing, [but] it didn’t come to pass. It would’ve been a little too knowing. I’m not looking to set out to make a cinematic universe!”
John Reid managed both Elton John and Queen, so it wouldn’t have been too out...
- 6/11/2019
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Chances are, if you didn’t head on over to IMDb or Wikipedia to confirm, you wouldn’t know that the same man directed both Bohemian Rhapsody and Rocketman…sort of.
Towards the end of production on the Freddie Mercury biopic, Bryan Singer was fired from the project by Twentieth Century Fox. It’s not entirely clear what led to the firing, though most outlets reported on how Singer regularly failed to show up for filming, which culminated with him taking an unapproved leave of absence around Thanksgiving of 2017. There were also reports that Bryan was a pain to work alongside, and it’s well known he got into altercations and arguments with actor Rami Malek, who won multiple awards for his role as Queen’s frontman.
Shortly after Singer was fired, he was replaced by none other than Dexter Fletcher, who finished the remaining third of the film. He...
Towards the end of production on the Freddie Mercury biopic, Bryan Singer was fired from the project by Twentieth Century Fox. It’s not entirely clear what led to the firing, though most outlets reported on how Singer regularly failed to show up for filming, which culminated with him taking an unapproved leave of absence around Thanksgiving of 2017. There were also reports that Bryan was a pain to work alongside, and it’s well known he got into altercations and arguments with actor Rami Malek, who won multiple awards for his role as Queen’s frontman.
Shortly after Singer was fired, he was replaced by none other than Dexter Fletcher, who finished the remaining third of the film. He...
- 6/11/2019
- by Shaan Joshi
- We Got This Covered
One of the wonderful things about Rocketman, of which there are many, is the film's willingness to peek into the raw, unsavory, and often heartbreaking moments that peppered Elton John's wildly successful career. Despite the musical biopic's sheen of fantasy, with all its glitz and glamour and bedazzled orange devil suits, there's a darkness lurking just below the surface that director Dexter Fletcher deftly dips in to, like an uplifting, peppy melody paired with a set of tragic lyrics.
One of the most painful parts of John's life, unquestionably, is his relationship with his mother, Sheila Dwight. She's played to perfection by Bryce Dallas Howard, who trades in her signature red hair for a dark wig that, for fans of the music icon, will likely immediately bring to mind his friendship with the late Elizabeth Taylor. Just like in the critically acclaimed season three episode of Black Mirror, "Nosedive,...
One of the most painful parts of John's life, unquestionably, is his relationship with his mother, Sheila Dwight. She's played to perfection by Bryce Dallas Howard, who trades in her signature red hair for a dark wig that, for fans of the music icon, will likely immediately bring to mind his friendship with the late Elizabeth Taylor. Just like in the critically acclaimed season three episode of Black Mirror, "Nosedive,...
- 6/10/2019
- by Quinn Keaney
- Popsugar.com
Billy Porter isn't holding back his thoughts about casting straight actors for gay roles. The 49-year-old Pose star sat down to discuss his career for The Hollywood Reporter's latest Drama Actor Roundtable, which also featured Sam Rockwell, Richard Madden, Hugh Grant, Diego Luna, and Stephan James. A total mic-drop moment happened when Porter was asked how close he was to quitting his Hollywood dream when he kept getting passed up for roles. The biggest reason he cites as the cause of his early difficulties in the industry is his identity as a person of color and a gay man.
"It's a double layer. The layer of actually being a person of color in this industry and then the other layer of being a queen," he said. "Nobody can see you as anything else. If 'flamboyantly . . . ' wasn't in the description of the character, no one would see me ever for anything.
"It's a double layer. The layer of actually being a person of color in this industry and then the other layer of being a queen," he said. "Nobody can see you as anything else. If 'flamboyantly . . . ' wasn't in the description of the character, no one would see me ever for anything.
- 6/7/2019
- by Brea Cubit
- Popsugar.com
The buzz around the Elton John biopic Rocketman has really been building up over the last few weeks, and now that the musical movie is finally in theaters, that hype is only set to grow. One thing that's already been making an impact is the onscreen chemistry between Taron Egerton and Richard Madden. The romance between the pair (as Elton John and his manager and lover John Reid) has stirred up the emotions of plenty of viewers and led to an enormous amount of shipping for the two British actors. The good news for those who can't get enough of them? They're just as cute off screen, too. Seeing them laughing, posing, and hanging out during the promotional tour has definitely helped fuel the fandoms of both actors. Whether they're hanging out in Cannes or hitting the red carpet in London, they always seem happy in each others' company. Keep...
- 6/5/2019
- by Gemma Cartwright
- Popsugar.com
In the new semibiographical musical Rocketman, Elton John's early romances play a significant role in the story. Although he's pretty much a camp icon and one of the most famous out gay men in pop culture, it wasn't always that way. Rocketman actually depicts John marrying a woman - and it's not something made up for the movie.
In 1984, John married Renate Blauel, a sound engineer who had been his dear friend for years. At this point in his life, John was publicly identifying as bisexual, which is what he identified himself as in a famous 1976 interview with Rolling Stone.
"I'm just going through a stage where any sign of affection would be welcome on a sexual level. I'd rather fall in love with a woman eventually because I think a woman probably lasts much longer than a man. But I really don't know," he mused. "There's nothing wrong...
In 1984, John married Renate Blauel, a sound engineer who had been his dear friend for years. At this point in his life, John was publicly identifying as bisexual, which is what he identified himself as in a famous 1976 interview with Rolling Stone.
"I'm just going through a stage where any sign of affection would be welcome on a sexual level. I'd rather fall in love with a woman eventually because I think a woman probably lasts much longer than a man. But I really don't know," he mused. "There's nothing wrong...
- 6/4/2019
- by Amanda Prahl
- Popsugar.com
‘Rocketman’
It’s fair to surmise there are far more Elton John fans in Australia than followers of the Godzilla franchise, judging by the opening weekends of Rocketman and Godzilla: King of the Monsters.
The Elton John biopic easily beat the Legendary Pictures/Warner Bros monsters movie, the reverse of their positions in the Us last weekend. However neither could catch the magical second weekend of Disney’s Aladdin.
Meanwhile Damon Gameau’s 2040 maintained momentum in its second weekend as Palace Cinemas extended their first weekend offer of free tickets to students on Saturday and Sunday, joined by some locations at Event Cinemas, Wallis Cinemas and independents. Screen Australia made a financial contribution to help distributor Madman Entertainment promote the incentive to students.
Gameau’s journey, which explores what the world could look like by 2040 if the best solutions already available to improve the planet are adopted, delivered $149,000 on 88 screens,...
It’s fair to surmise there are far more Elton John fans in Australia than followers of the Godzilla franchise, judging by the opening weekends of Rocketman and Godzilla: King of the Monsters.
The Elton John biopic easily beat the Legendary Pictures/Warner Bros monsters movie, the reverse of their positions in the Us last weekend. However neither could catch the magical second weekend of Disney’s Aladdin.
Meanwhile Damon Gameau’s 2040 maintained momentum in its second weekend as Palace Cinemas extended their first weekend offer of free tickets to students on Saturday and Sunday, joined by some locations at Event Cinemas, Wallis Cinemas and independents. Screen Australia made a financial contribution to help distributor Madman Entertainment promote the incentive to students.
Gameau’s journey, which explores what the world could look like by 2040 if the best solutions already available to improve the planet are adopted, delivered $149,000 on 88 screens,...
- 6/3/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
The trailer was promising, and so was the CinemaCon footage. But it takes confidence to send a movie to Cannes, and Paramount’s Jim Gianopulos, who knows the ins and outs of the international market, decided to launch out-of-competition at Cannes one of his first greenlights, Dexter Fletcher’s $40-million Elton John musical “Rocketman.”
The gamble paid off as the movie played well, with producers John and his partner David Furnish and songwriter-partner Bernie Taupin on hand. (Tomatometer is strong so far.) Cannes veterans know that the end-of-movie Palais applause is always long and lingering. What’s rare is breaking into applause in the middle, as the audience did after Taron Egerton as John sits down at the piano in his mother’s house and figures out the music for “Your Song” as Taupin (Jamie Bell) watches. It’s the moment when an artist finally finds his voice. I was in tears.
The gamble paid off as the movie played well, with producers John and his partner David Furnish and songwriter-partner Bernie Taupin on hand. (Tomatometer is strong so far.) Cannes veterans know that the end-of-movie Palais applause is always long and lingering. What’s rare is breaking into applause in the middle, as the audience did after Taron Egerton as John sits down at the piano in his mother’s house and figures out the music for “Your Song” as Taupin (Jamie Bell) watches. It’s the moment when an artist finally finds his voice. I was in tears.
- 5/16/2019
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
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