Walt Disney Co. DIS wanted to delete the swear words from the Disney+ presentation of Peter Jackson’s three-part documentary “The Beatles: Get Back,” but resistance from Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr resulted in the production breaking the streaming service’s G-rated boundaries.
What Happened: In an interview with NME, Jackson recalled that the Mouse Factory was unhappy by his decision not to bleep out the occasional four-letter words that percolated through the Beatles’ recording sessions. However, the two surviving Beatles plus Olivia Harrison, the widow of bandmate George Harrison, weren't interested in sanitizing the soundtrack.
“Disney wanted to remove all the swearing and Ringo, Paul and Olivia said: ‘That’s how we spoke. That’s how we talked. That’s how we want the world to see us,’” Jackson said.
Jackson added that McCartney viewed the documentary – which included previously unseen footage shot in 1969 during the making of the documentary “Let It Be,” as being “very raw.”
“He said to me: ‘That is a very accurate portrayal of how we were then,’” Jackson continued. “Ringo said: ‘It’s truthful.’ The truthfulness of it is important to them. They don’t want a whitewash. They don’t want it to be sanitized.”
The film also showed the Beatles smoking cigarettes during their recording session and studio conversations, which marked another broken taboo for the tobacco-free environment on Disney+.
Related Link: Disney+ Censors 'Simpsons' Episode From Hong Kong Service Citing Tiananmen Square Massacre
What’s Not Happening: Many film and music observers have praised “The Beatles: Get Back” for offering a more positive consideration of the band during their final stretch together than “Let It Be,” which seemed to place an emphasis on the fraying relationship between the Beatles.
“Let It Be” was honored following its 1970 release with an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score and a Grammy Award for Best Original Score; it was the only Beatles films to win an Oscar. But after a VHS video release in the early 1980s, “Let It Be” has been unavailable for commercial and broadcast release. An announcement for a DVD version in 2003 never materialized, and there has been no talk of re-releasing the film in the wake of Jackson’s film.
Bootleg copies of "Let It Be" have circulated for years and turned up online, including this not-pristine unauthorized Vimeo posting:
Photo: Disney+
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