Update on Baz Luhrmann's biopic

[mojo-workin]

Thought I’d do a breakdown in terms of budget of the forthcoming film - in comparison to other major biopics and big budget blockbusters. Whether we like the finished film or not, there’s a few things to consider:

Luhrmann’s film has a projected budget of over $200 million.
That means it’s already the most expensive music biopic ever made.
And as it features A-lister Tom Hanks in one of the main roles (which most biopics don't), the film has some gravitas.

Music biopic budget comparisons:

Rocketman (2019) $40 million
Judy (2019) $10 million
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) $55 million
Get on Up (2014) $32 million (with 2019 inflation)
Walk The Line (2005) $36 million (with 2019 inflation)
Ray (2004) $54 million (with 2019 inflation)

Film blockbuster budget comparisons for 2019

Avengers: End Game $356 million
Toy Story 4 $200 million
Aladdin $183 million
Godzilla: King of The Monsters $170 million
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood $90-96 million
Joker $55-70 million

So the budget is nearly 4 times that of "Bohemian Rhapsody" (which right now is the most successful music biopic ever made).
No doubt Warner Brothers will be wanting to cash in on recent biopic popularity. Bohemian Rhapsody's marketing budget was around $121 million. I’m sure Warner Brothers will be spending as much or even more for the Elvis film. The “Elvis” brand will everywhere for a while, whether we like it or not.

What will it do for Elvis’ legacy? That’s the million dollar question. You can guarantee there will be a co-ordinated marketing campaign between Warner Brothers, Sony and EPE - tie-in documentaries, tribute TV shows, news reports, compilations albums etc. Then they'll be PR with the director and cast members - YouTube interviews/behind the scenes featurettes/TV spots etc. Depending on what the film’s title will be, Elvis' name/likeness will be on giant film billboards everywhere. And as Luhrmann already has strong ties with RCA Records - there will be a tie-in soundtrack album

Of course COVID makes the situation more complex. Will cinema attendances be back to normal by next summer? And as the Aretha Franklin film is due out later this summer, will audiences by that time have biopic fatigue? Let's wait and see.

[TonyS]

Let’s wait and see is correct.
Fingers crossed.

[Mountain Mist]

Thought I’d do a breakdown in terms of budget of the forthcoming film - in comparison to other major biopics and big budget blockbusters. Whether we like the finished film or not, there’s a few things to consider:

Luhrmann’s film has a projected budget of over $200 million.
That means it’s already the most expensive music biopic ever made.
And as it features A-lister Tom Hanks in one of the main roles (which most biopics don't), the film has some gravitas.

Music biopic budget comparisons:

Rocketman (2019) $40 million
Judy (2019) $10 million
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) $55 million
Get on Up (2014) $32 million (with 2019 inflation)
Walk The Line (2005) $36 million (with 2019 inflation)
Ray (2004) $54 million (with 2019 inflation)

Film blockbuster budget comparisons for 2019

Avengers: End Game $356 million
Toy Story 4 $200 million
Aladdin $183 million
Godzilla: King of The Monsters $170 million
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood $90-96 million
Joker $55-70 million

So the budget is nearly 4 times that of "Bohemian Rhapsody" (which right now is the most successful music biopic ever made).
No doubt Warner Brothers will be wanting to cash in on recent biopic popularity. Bohemian Rhapsody's marketing budget was around $121 million. I’m sure Warner Brothers will be spending as much or even more for the Elvis film. The “Elvis” brand will everywhere for a while, whether we like it or not.

What will it do for Elvis’ legacy? That’s the million dollar question. You can guarantee there will be a co-ordinated marketing campaign between Warner Brothers, Sony and EPE - tie-in documentaries, tribute TV shows, news reports, compilations albums etc. Then they'll be PR with the director and cast members - YouTube interviews/behind the scenes featurettes/TV spots etc. Depending on what the film’s title will be, Elvis' name/likeness will be on giant film billboards everywhere. And as Luhrmann already has strong ties with RCA Records - there will be a tie-in soundtrack album

Of course COVID makes the situation more complex. Will cinema attendances be back to normal by next summer? And as the Aretha Franklin film is due out later this summer, will audiences by that time have biopic fatigue? Let's wait and see.

This was a really interesting read, thank you.

[Lou A.]

Thought I’d do a breakdown in terms of budget of the forthcoming film - in comparison to other major biopics and big budget blockbusters. Whether we like the finished film or not, there’s a few things to consider:

Luhrmann’s film has a projected budget of over $200 million.
That means it’s already the most expensive music biopic ever made.
And as it features A-lister Tom Hanks in one of the main roles (which most biopics don't), the film has some gravitas.

Music biopic budget comparisons:

Rocketman (2019) $40 million
Judy (2019) $10 million
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) $55 million
Get on Up (2014) $32 million (with 2019 inflation)
Walk The Line (2005) $36 million (with 2019 inflation)
Ray (2004) $54 million (with 2019 inflation)

Film blockbuster budget comparisons for 2019

Avengers: End Game $356 million
Toy Story 4 $200 million
Aladdin $183 million
Godzilla: King of The Monsters $170 million
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood $90-96 million
Joker $55-70 million

So the budget is nearly 4 times that of "Bohemian Rhapsody" (which right now is the most successful music biopic ever made).
No doubt Warner Brothers will be wanting to cash in on recent biopic popularity. Bohemian Rhapsody's marketing budget was around $121 million. I’m sure Warner Brothers will be spending as much or even more for the Elvis film. The “Elvis” brand will everywhere for a while, whether we like it or not.

What will it do for Elvis’ legacy? That’s the million dollar question. You can guarantee there will be a co-ordinated marketing campaign between Warner Brothers, Sony and EPE - tie-in documentaries, tribute TV shows, news reports, compilations albums etc. Then they'll be PR with the director and cast members - YouTube interviews/behind the scenes featurettes/TV spots etc. Depending on what the film’s title will be, Elvis' name/likeness will be on giant film billboards everywhere. And as Luhrmann already has strong ties with RCA Records - there will be a tie-in soundtrack album

Of course COVID makes the situation more complex. Will cinema attendances be back to normal by next summer? And as the Aretha Franklin film is due out later this summer, will audiences by that time have biopic fatigue? Let's wait and see.

Yes , thanks for posting this. It gives hope for a good uplift to Elvis’s image, and popularity.

[TonyS]

Images of part of the Graceland set.

B0A944BF-C044-4A04-8C0E-50FC403448AF.jpeg

6EDE77EA-B924-4ED3-82A0-48EDD94AEFC4.jpeg

[Colin B]

Can't shake off the feeling that this film will either be a huge success or fall flat on its face.

Hope it's the former !

[or619]

Hope it is more like Bohemian Rhapsody than Rocket Man which I didn't enjoy. Hopefully we will finally get an Elvis biography we can all be proud of and people will enjoy.

[mojo-workin]

Can't shake off the feeling that this film will either be a huge success or fall flat on its face.

Hope it's the former !

Absolutely. I think it will all be down to PR/Marketing really & how much Warner Brothers is willing to spend, regardless of the quality of the film. Personally, i think Bohemian Rhapsody wasn't that great - but was only successful because of the marketing campaign. I remember reading about the 2002 Number 1 hits album & how RCA spent millions on the international marketing budget (which obviously paid off) - different times obviously, but money talks.

[mojo-workin]

Hope it is more like Bohemian Rhapsody than Rocket Man which I didn't enjoy. Hopefully we will finally get an Elvis biography we can all be proud of and people will enjoy.

Luhrmann's has already stated it won't be a conventional biopic, so i doubt it will be anything like the Queen film. Whatever the outcome, it should give Elvis' legacy a boost & open his music up to a new generation - and that might bring about investment in projects which would have previously never happened.

[TonyS]

Luhrmann's has already stated it won't be a conventional biopic...

With all the other famous musician portrayed I’m getting the feeling it’s going to be more of a musical to be honest.

[mojo-workin]

Luhrmann's has already stated it won't be a conventional biopic...

With all the other famous musician portrayed I’m getting the feeling it’s going to be more of a musical to be honest.

I agree. Some of Luhrmann's previous works like Moulin Rouge & The Get Down (TV Show) were essentially musical dramas. I wouldn't be surprised if Elvis' songs were the main thing that carried the story.

[TonyS]

Luhrmann's has already stated it won't be a conventional biopic...

With all the other famous musician portrayed I’m getting the feeling it’s going to be more of a musical to be honest.

I agree. Some of Luhrmann's previous works like Moulin Rouge & The Get Down (TV Show) were essentially musical dramas. I wouldn't be surprised if Elvis' songs were the main thing that carried the story.

I have a feeling this is going to be a stylised film along the lines of 'Moulin Rouge'.
I have a feeling lots of Elvis fans will be very disappointed.

Just as I previously thought and said on the 27th January, and I’m beginning to be more convinced of it.

[mojo-workin]

Luhrmann's has already stated it won't be a conventional biopic...

With all the other famous musician portrayed I’m getting the feeling it’s going to be more of a musical to be honest.

I agree. Some of Luhrmann's previous works like Moulin Rouge & The Get Down (TV Show) were essentially musical dramas. I wouldn't be surprised if Elvis' songs were the main thing that carried the story.

I have a feeling this is going to be a stylised film along the lines of 'Moulin Rouge'.
I have a feeling lots of Elvis fans will be very disappointed.

Just as I previously thought and said on the 27th January, and I’m beginning to be more convinced of it.

Yep. I do think it will be closer in approach to "The Get Down" (based on the birth of hip-hop) as opposed to Moulin.
The Get Down was historically accurate though stylised, had amazing attention to detail & was lauded by fans of the music genre.
As the Elvis film has characters playing Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Arthur Crudup, Big Mama Thorton & Little Richard, part of the story will be probably be about the birth of rock 'n roll
https://youtu.be/Wc1cmKPY9bA

[Mountain Mist]

Luhrmann's has already stated it won't be a conventional biopic...

With all the other famous musician portrayed I’m getting the feeling it’s going to be more of a musical to be honest.

I agree. Some of Luhrmann's previous works like Moulin Rouge & The Get Down (TV Show) were essentially musical dramas. I wouldn't be surprised if Elvis' songs were the main thing that carried the story.

I have a feeling this is going to be a stylised film along the lines of 'Moulin Rouge'.
I have a feeling lots of Elvis fans will be very disappointed.

Just as I previously thought and said on the 27th January, and I’m beginning to be more convinced of it.

Yep. I do think it will be closer in approach to "The Get Down" (based on the birth of hip-hop) as opposed to Moulin.
The Get Down was historically accurate though stylised, had amazing attention to detail & was lauded by fans of the music genre.
As the Elvis film has characters playing Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Arthur Crudup, Big Mama Thorton & Little Richard, part of the story will be probably be about the birth of rock 'n roll
https://youtu.be/Wc1cmKPY9bA

"The Get Down" looks good to me. It seems that it is in a similar style to the very successful and, to me, enjoyable, dance musical from the 1980's, called, "Fame".

I am hopeful for Elvis' upcoming biopic.

Thank you, mojo-workin'.

[mojo-workin]

First teaser for the film posted today on Luhrmann's instagram account: (click on link/image):
https://www.instagram.com/p/CWTrPFgBZIf/