Public domain photo of the Bee Gees.
Deadline is reporting that Paramount Pictures in association with Bohemian Rhapsody producer Graham King and producer-financier Sister are producing a biopic of the Bee Gees.
The British brothers Robin, Barry and Maurice Gibb formed the Bee Gees in 1958. While they had success in the late 1960s and early 1970s, they shot to fame in the disco era of the late 1970s after they wrote music for the film Saturday Night Fever, which became a chart-busting album.
According to the report, Paramount purchased the trio’s life rights from the Gibb family estate. This will allow them to use all the group’s songs in the film.
The film will be the follow up to Paramount’s Rocketman.
The biopic about Elton John’s rise to fame was directed by Dexter Fletcher and starred Taron Egerton, who actually sang John’s songs himself. The film will also be the follow up to King’s Bohemian Rhapsody about the rise of Queen, which won an Academy Award for Rami Malek’s performance as well as a Best Picture nomination.
Sister is a venture that was recently launched by Elisabeth Murdoch, Stacey Snider and Jane Featherstone. They will either act as a co-financier of the project or a producing partner. Snider joined the company as a principal after leaving her job as chairman and CEO of Twentieth Century Fox in the aftermath of Disney’s acquisition of it.
The Bee Gees were one of the biggest-selling music acts of all time, having sold over 220 million records across the world. Only Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Michael Jackson, Garth Brooks, and Paul McCartney have sold more. In 1997, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Barry Gibb, who will forever be remembered for his falsettos on songs such as “More Than a Woman,” is the last living member of the group.