Sam Mendes to Direct Four Separate Beatles Films Based on Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, John Lennon & George Harrison

Sam Mendes is set to direct four separate Beatles biopic films, each based on a different member of the iconic band.

Deadline reports that the deal marks the first time that Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and the families of John Lennon and George Harrison have granted full life and music rights for a film based on their lives.

The idea for the series of films was conceived by Mendes. The interconnected stories will each be told from the individual band members' points of view.

Sam Mendes' work has been seen at The National Theatre, RSC, Royal Court, Old Vic, Young Vic, BAM, the West End and on Broadway. He has directed musicals like Cabaret, Assassins, Oliver!, Company, Gypsy, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He helmed recent Broadway productions of The Ferryman and The Lehman Trilogy.

He founded and ran The Donmar Warehouse in London for ten years. He was the founding director of The Bridge Project and Neal Street Productions. Awards include Academy Award Best Director, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award Best Director, 2 Tony Awards, 5 Olivier Awards, the Olivier Special Award, 3 Evening Standard Awards, Empire Inspiration Award, Directors Guild of America Award and the Shakespeare Prize. He has also won the Director's Guild Award for lifetime achievement.

Films include American Beauty, Road to Perdition, Jarhead, Revolutionary Road, Away We Go, Skyfall, Spectre, and 1917.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Broski