Elton John insisted that Rocketman, the new film about his life, not shy away from sex and drugs.
“Some studios wanted to tone down the sex and drugs so the film would get a PG-13 rating,” the singer wrote in an essay for the Guardian. “But I just haven’t led a PG-13 rated life.”
John said he didn’t want a film “packed” with sex and drugs but one that acknowledged that he had “quite a lot of both during the 70s and 80s.”
He added: “There didn’t seem to be much point in making a movie that implied that after every gig, I’d quietly gone back to my hotel room with only a glass of warm milk and the Gideon’s Bible for company.”
guys the sex scene in rocketman wasn’t even that bad it’s like thirty seconds long and they just kiss and undress a lil bit
— (@rosaslinettti) May 26, 2019
John compared the biopic, which opens Friday, to Tantrums and Tiaras, the documentary by his Canadian husband David Furnish.
“Lots of people told me I was insane to allow that documentary to be released, but I loved it, because it was truthful. There are moments in it – and moments in the film – where I’m completely disgusting and awful,” John recalled, "but then, at my worst, I was disgusting and awful, and there’s no reason to pretend otherwise.”
MORE: Elton John, Taron Egerton Perform 'Tiny Dancer'
In Rocketman, John is portrayed by Taron Egerton – but the music icon said Justin Timberlake and Tom Hardy were both under consideration for the role.
Egerton, who sang “I’m Still Standing” in the animated film Sing, won John over by performing “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.”
He recalled: “I thought it was really important that whoever played me didn’t lip-sync, I wanted them to actually sing the songs … His singing really astounded me.”