Peter Jackson’s Beatles documentary, which includes never-before-seen footage of the rock band, will be released by the end of the year.
Disney has acquired the distribution rights to Jackson’s The Beatles: Get Back and will launch the film in the US on September 4, Disney executive chair Bob Iger said during the company’s annual shareholder meeting.
Jackson’s documentary has been billed as a new version of the 1970 “Let It Be” documentary film, which will see a remastered re-release sometime after “The Beatles: Get Back” premieres.
“Let It Be” hasn’t been commercially available since the 1980s.
The documentary contains notable footage of the band at work in the studio, capturing John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr as they create their now-classic songs from scratch, laughing, bantering and playing to the camera.
The film will also show the band’s final live rooftop performance in 1969.
“Working on this project has been a joyous discovery,” Jackson said in a statement. “I’ve been privileged to be a fly on the wall while the greatest band of all time works, plays and creates masterpieces. I’m thrilled that Disney have stepped up as our distributor. There’s no one better to have our movie seen by the greatest number of people.”
The footage is being restored by the New Zealand-based Park Road Post Production, with Jabez Olssen (“They Shall Not Grow Old”) serving as editor.
The music in the film will be mixed by Giles Martin and Sam Okell at Abbey Road Studios in London. Production is being handled by Apple Cords Ltd and Jackson’s WingNut Films. Producers include Jackson, Clare Olssen and Jonathan Clyde, with Ken Kamins and Jeff Jones serving as executive producers.
“No band has had the kind of impact on the world that The Beatles have had, and “The Beatles: Get Back” is a front-row seat to the inner workings of these genius creators at a seminal moment in music history, with spectacularly restored footage that looks like it was shot yesterday,” Iger said in a statement. “I’m a huge fan myself, so I could not be happier that Disney is able to share Peter Jackson’s stunning documentary with global audiences in September.”