Paul McCartney has criticised filmmakers for inaccurately portraying the Beatles’ heights, revealing that the issue remains a personal frustration decades after the band’s heyday.
Speaking on the latest episode of Good Hang with Amy Poehler, the 84-year-old musician explained that the four band members were almost the same height, apart from Ringo Starr, who was slightly shorter.
“We were all the same height,” McCartney said, adding, “And if you look at photos, we’re all the same height.”
The conversation turned to Sam Taylor-Johnson’s 2009 film Nowhere Boy, which depicted a teenage John Lennon as noticeably bigger than McCartney.
The singer recalled objecting to the portrayal, saying his character appeared “wimpy” and was knocked to the floor by Lennon.
“And it’s like, ‘Sam, this is not true!’,” McCartney recalled telling the director. He said Taylor-Johnson responded that “this is a movie, it’s not a documentary”, an explanation he was unhappy with.
McCartney also raised concerns about the upcoming four-part Beatles biopic series directed by Sam Mendes. Paul Mescal is set to portray McCartney, while Harris Dickinson plays Lennon.
Discussing a still from the production recreating the Beatles’ famous Abbey Road photograph, McCartney said his character appeared noticeably shorter than Lennon.
“So I texted him, ‘Sam! Smaller! Don’t do this! You said you wouldn’t do it!,” McCartney said, describing his message to Mendes.
Mendes later reportedly sent another image showing the two characters at equal heights.
