The first cut... Now it’s Rod, the movie!
Hell-raiser’s life of booze and girls to hit the silver screen
FROM hell-raiser Johnny Cash to megastars Freddie Mercury and Elton John, Hollywood has struck box office gold immortalising the turbulent lives and loves of musical legends.
Now, the latest rock and roll star set to have his colourful antics translated to the silver screen is Sir Rod Stewart, the Mail on Sunday has learned.
The Maggie May singer’s love of leggy blondes, leopard-print trousers and hedonistic partying is to be captured in a new, as-yet-untitled biopic which is being overseen by Sir Rod’s long-time manager, Arnold Stiefel.
Stiefel is understood to have already spoken to scriptwriters for the movie project which will be strictly controlled by the 75-year-old singer and his team. ‘Rod’s delighted,’ a source confirmed. ‘His management company is already drawing up plans and has spoken to at least one scriptwriter.
‘The whole thing will be controlled by Rod’s management company, just like Bohemian Rhapsody was controlled by Queen’s management. They’ll organise everything, including the script and the casting, then they’ll find a film company to take it on.’
Hollywood knows such movies are a no-brainer because they are hugely successful with audiences and critics alike.
Walk the Line, the 2005 biopic of Johnny Cash and his long-suffering wife, June Carter, won
Best Acting Oscars for its stars Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. Bohemian Rhapsody won five Oscars last year, including Best Actor for Rami Malek, who played Mercury, while Elton John bagged a gong for Best Original Song this year for (I’m Gonna) Love Me, which he wrote for Rocketman, the story of his troubled early years.
Sir Rod is currently married to third wife Penny Lancaster and he famously dated former Bond girl Britt Ekland and model Kelly Emberg.
‘Rod’s always had a gorgeous girl on his arm and went through the whole 70s party scene, so there are plenty of wild tales to tell,’ said a source.
The singer recently suggested on BBC Radio 2 that Notting Hill and Harry Potter actor Rhys Ifans would be a good choice to play him on screen.
‘There are plenty of wild tales to tell from the 1970s’