Billy Joel wants fans to know a movie about him is moving ahead—just not with his blessing, or his songs, People reports. The 77-year-old musician's rep says the planned feature Billy and Me is "unauthorized," stressing that filmmakers have been told since 2021 they don't have Joel's life rights or permission to use his music. Pitched as a look at Joel's early career through the eyes of former manager Irwin Mazur, the film comes from director John Ottman (an Oscar winner for editing Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody) and writer Adam Ripp; they hold life rights for Mazur and Joel's onetime drummer Jon Small. Joel's spokesperson warned that any attempt to proceed without the Piano Man's cooperation would be "legally and professionally misguided."
As Variety reports, Mazur discovered Joel in 1966 and managed him until 1972—before 1973's Piano Man made him into a superstar. Small, a friend of Joel's who is also involved with the film, insists in a lengthy statement, "As someone who was there from the very beginning, I can say this script captures not just the music, but the friendships, struggles, humor, and creative spark that defined those years." Joel did recently open up on his own terms in the HBO documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes, which he approved. He said he had long resisted such projects but agreed after telling filmmakers his only rule: "Just tell the truth." Per the Hollywood Reporter, it's unclear whether Ottman, who also recently edited the Michael Jackson biopic Michael, initially hoped to receive Joel's blessing.
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
