Paul McCartney flags issue with Beatles film casting

The Beatles legend, Sir Paul McCartney has an objection to Paul Mescal playing him in Sir Sam Mendes' Beatles movies.

He shared that he was frustrated by Sam Taylor-Johnson's 2009 biopic ‘Nowhere Boy’, which followed his late bandmate John Lennon's early years, because he felt the height difference between Thomas Brodie-Sangster and Aaron Taylor-Johnson made him look "wimpy".

The Beatles legend has shared that he was keen for the dynamic not to be echoed in the upcoming four-film cinematic event.

He recently graced Amy Poehler’s ‘Good Hang’ podcast, and said, "We were all the same height, and Ringo was a bit smaller. And if you look at photos, we’re all the same height. (In Nowhere Boy), the John character, who she later married, Aaron, he’s bigger than me in the film”.

He further mentioned, "My character is kind of wimpy. Smaller than John. John knocks me to the floor. And it’s like, ‘Sam, this is not true’. Her only explanation, bless her, ‘cause she’s still a good friend, she said, ‘This is a movie, it’s not a documentary’. And I thought, ‘Mm. Well, I don’t like that explanation’. But I couldn’t do anything, ‘cause by now she’d made the film. There was I, little Paul. John, the great big hero, and it’s like, No! It’s not true”.

He then said he had reservations when he heard Mescal had been cast alongside Harris Dickinson as Lennon in Mendes' upcoming project, and he messaged the director to voice his concerns.

Talking about the actor, he said, "Guess what? He’s smaller than the guy who plays John. Sam Mendes is making the film. I said, ‘Sam, I’ve got just one thing that I need to say to you. You know, Paul (Mescal is) a bit smaller’, I don’t know how Sam’s gonna deal with it. He sent me a picture, a still from the filming they were doing, and they’re crossing the Abbey Road crossing, and the Paul character is markedly smaller. I texted him, ‘Sam! Smaller? Don’t do this! You said you wouldn’t do it’”.

However, the filmmaker was quick to try and appease the 84-year-old music legend, as the musician said, "He said, ‘No, it’s okay, it’s just the stride pattern’”.

Indo-Asian News Service