A rep for Billy Joel claims he has nothing to do with the just-announced biopic Billy & Me, calling it “legally and professionally misguided.”
John Ottman, the Oscar-winning film editor who worked on biopics such as Michael and Bohemian Rhapsody, is scheduled to direct the biopic that tells the story of Joel’s rise to fame through the eyes of his former manager Irwin Mazur.
However, the “Piano Man” singer-songwriter is not involved, and has refused to take part in the project for years now.
“Since 2021, the parties involved have been officially notified that they do not possess Billy Joel’s life rights and will not be able to secure the music rights required for this project,” Joel’s rep said in a statement. “Billy Joel has not authorized or supported this project in any capacity, and any attempt to move forward without it would be both legally and professionally misguided.”
Adam Ripp, who is writing the screenplay, has since shed some light on the film, explaining to The Hollywood Reporter that Billy & Me is not intended to tell Joel’s life story, but of how he was discovered by Mazur.
“Billy & Me is specifically not a traditional cradle-to-grave Billy Joel biopic, nor is it dependent on Billy Joel’s original music catalog,“ Ripp said. ”The film takes place during Billy’s formative years — before the fame, before the fortune, and before the iconic songs that made him ‘The Piano Man.’ Much of the period depicted centers around Billy’s early years performing cover songs with The Hassles and struggling to find his artistic identity as a young musician."
“At no point have we ever claimed to control or possess rights to Billy Joel’s original songs, nor has this film ever been conceived around the use of his hit catalog,” he continued. “The project was always designed as an intimate origin story focused on the people and relationships surrounding Billy during this specific period of his life. The film is told primarily through the point of view of Irwin Mazur, who discovered Billy as a teenager and managed him for approximately seven years. We hold the exclusive life rights to Irwin Mazur.”
“Additionally, we also hold the life rights to Billy’s lifelong best friend and original drummer, Jon Small, who is actively involved in the production as a consultant, co-executive producer, and second unit director. Jon personally consulted on the screenplay and fully endorses the film as someone who lived through and experienced the events portrayed firsthand,” he added. “We have tremendous respect for Billy Joel and his extraordinary legacy. Our intention has always been to tell an honest, heartfelt story about the early years of a young artist before the world knew his name.”