John Lydon, formerly the iconic Sex Pistols vocalist known as Johnny Rotten, says that he never authorized guitarist Steve Jones’ upcoming biopic miniseries on the band. The series is based on Jones’ memoir Lonely Boy: Tales from a Sex Pistol.
Lydon talked about it during an interview with The Sunday Times. He claimed that he was never contacted about the biopic by its director Danny Boyle, who is also known for films such as Trainspotting (1996), 28 Days Later (2002), Slumdog Millionaire (2008) and Yesterday (2019). “I think that’s the most disrespectful shit I’ve ever had to endure,” he states. “I mean, they went to the point to hire an actor to play me but what’s the actor working on? Certainly not my character. It can’t go anywhere else.”
He also mentioned that he had even met Boyle previously while the director was working on the London 2012 Olympics. The cast has also been announced, including 1917 actor Anson Boon playing Lydon’s part, The Society/Babyteeth actor Toby Wallace as Jones, Enola Homes/Paddington 2 actor Louis Partridge as 1977-1978 bassist Sid Vicious, new actor Jacob Slater as drummer Paul Cook and The Serpent actor Fabien Frankel as founding bassist Glen Matlock.
“Sorry, you think you can do this, like walk all over me – it isn’t going to happen. Not without a huge, enormous fucking fight,” Lydon continued. “I’m Johnny, you know, and when you interfere with my business you’re going to get the bitter end of my business as a result. It’s a disgrace.”
A spokesman for the production says that they had reached out to Lydon but “ultimately direct contact was declined.” Boyle hasn’t responded to Lydon’s allegations at this time.
The miniseries is titled Pistol, and is currently under production, although no word has been released on when it’s expected to release. Moulin Rouge! writer Craig Pearce and 24-Hour Party People writer Frank Cottrell Boyce co-wrote the script.
Lydon began singing for the band shortly after they formed in 1975 until they disbanded in 1978. While the Sex Pistols didn’t stay together for longer than their one studio album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols (1977), his lyrics for highly influential punk hits like “God Save the Queen” and “Anarchy in the UK” remain legendary to this day.
Since the Sex Pistols broke up, Lydon has been the frontman for punk band Public Image, Ltd. Their first two albums Public Image (1978) and Second Edition [Metal Box] (1979) showed off an impressively experimental rock sound and reached cult favorites status. He remained the sole permanent member throughout their shifting lineup’s history, as they released albums semi-regularly between 1978 and 1992. They also shared a couple of comeback albums recently, including This is PiL (2012) and What the World Needs Now (2015).
Photo credit: David Uzzardi
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