With the help of casting directors and some buzz, the actors for new Beatles movies are becoming clearer—two might even be from Gladiator II.
Joseph Quinn, who appears in Gladiator II and Stranger Things, is likely to play George Harrison in Sam Mendes’ upcoming films about the Beatles’ lives. Though it’s not confirmed, there’s talk that Paul Mescal could be portraying Paul McCartney, and Barry Keoghan might take on the role of Ringo Starr. When asked about playing John Lennon, Harris Dickinson said, “It would be amazing to do that. I think the idea of Sam teaming up to do something like that would be incredibly exciting. … It would be cool.”
Earlier this year, Mendes shared that he’s working with Sony Pictures on these projects, set to release together in 2027. He said, “I’m honored to be telling the story of the greatest rock band of all time, and excited to challenge the notion of what constitutes a trip to the movies.”
People feel super thrilled about these Beatles movies.
There aren’t many details yet about when each film will come out or which periods they’ll cover. Mendes and Harrison’s representatives haven’t commented on Quinn being cast as George Harrison.
What’s clear is that there’s a renewed energy around the Beatles, following projects like Get Back and the reissued Let It Be film. Olivia Harrison, George’s widow, mentioned plans for a documentary about his 1974 tour, which featured Ravi Shankar. She said they’re working on transferring original footage to get the best quality.
Olivia added, “It’s a record of the concerts but also [promoter] Bill Graham sitting there counting money and the Indian musicians eating pizza and Jim Keltner and the musicians doing amazing time signature things. So we’re trying to get that done.” There’s no word yet on when it will be finished or released.
