From Walk the Line to Ray to I'm Not There to any number of such biopics, there's just something about the lives of musicians that makes their stories translate into compelling films. One musician who enjoyed massive fame and success in her short life was English singer Amy Winehouse. Now the recipient of six Grammy awards is getting a biopic that will begin filming next year.
According to The Wrap, Amy Winehouse's family has signed a deal to executive produce the biopic alongside Monumental Pictures' Alison Owen and Debra Hayward, who will produce. Production is set to start next year. The as-yet-untitled film will be written by Kinky Boots writer Geoff Deane, who will also executive produce.
Proceeds from the biopic will benefit the Amy Winehouse Foundation, a charity set up in the wake of the singer's death to prevent the effects of alcohol and drug misuse on young people. Amy Winehouse died in 2011 due to alcohol poisoning. She was 27 and is now part of the infamous '27 Club', iconic musicians who all died at the age of 27, which includes Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and Kurt Cobain.
In a statement Amy Winehouse's father, Mitch Winehouse said that although the family was approached about the rights many times, they never felt the time was right to tell Amy's story until now. He noted that now they can celebrate Amy's life and talent. He also mentioned Alison Owen and Debra Hayward's history of producing female-driven stories. Between them, the two have produced films such as Elizabeth, Suffragette, Jane Eyre and the upcoming Mary Queen of Scots.
A24 released a documentary about the late singer in 2015 called Amy, and although it was critically acclaimed, it Amy Winehouse's family had some major problems with it. So this film will theoretically provide a different side of her story.
Anecdotally, it seems like we're in an age of great music biopics, so now does seem like a great time to tell the story of Amy Winehouse. Films like Straight Outta Compton, Get on Up and Love & Mercy have all come out in recent years and explored the fascinating and often chaotic lives of those living rock star lives. This new Amy Winehouse biopic will hopefully continue this trend of quality.
The real trick for this film will be casting and the singing. Amy Winehouse's soulful and sultry contralto vocals made her voice stand out among all the more poppy stars of her era, and capturing that will be important to this movies' success. It will also be interesting to see if this film or any other upcoming music films try and recreate the authenticity that A Star is Born captured by having the actors actually sing live on set.
While you await the Amy Winehouse biopic, there's another biopic about an iconic musician heading to theaters in just a few short weeks. Bohemian Rhapsody tells the story of Queen and legendary frontman Freddie Mercury. That film hits theaters on November 2. For all of the biggest movies heading to theaters this fall, check out our release schedule.
