Sam Mendes’ Beatles Production Heading For Abbey Road Shoot
Sam Mendes’ four-film Beatles biopic project is due to shoot a 1960s London scene at Abbey Road this summer, including the street and the studios’ front courtyard. The location is significant because Abbey Road is closely associated with the band’s recording career and final album, while the project is an unusually ambitious set of separate theatrical films about each member.
Sony Pictures told nearby residents and businesses that the scene will use about 80 extras and vintage vehicles, with road closures and bus diversions arranged alongside Westminster City Council. Paul Mescal, Joseph Quinn, Barry Keoghan and Harris Dickinson play McCartney, Harrison, Starr and Lennon respectively; the films are targeted for release in April 2028, with scripts by Jez Butterworth, Peter Straughan and Jack Thorne.
In short
- Mendes’ Beatles films will shoot at Abbey Road this summer.
- The scene requires 80 extras, vintage vehicles and road closures.
- Four separate biopics are planned for April 2028.
Explained simply
The Beatles were a British band whose music and public image changed popular culture in the 1960s. Abbey Road in north London is closely linked to their recording career: they worked at the studios there, and their 1969 album Abbey Road took its name from the street.
Sam Mendes is directing four separate films, each centred on one member of the group: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison or Ringo Starr. The project brings together four actors to portray the musicians and is planned as a set of theatrical releases.
Filming at a place associated with the band gives the production a direct link to its subject. The planned scene also affects people who live or work nearby, as filming with extras and period vehicles can require temporary road closures and changes to bus routes.
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