Pattie Boyd, the former wife of George Harrison, has criticised the makers of the upcoming Beatles biopic series for not contacting her about her portrayal. The 82-year-old model, who was married to Harrison from 1966 to 1977, said she was not consulted by director Sam Mendes or his team about the character based on her, which will be played by Aimee Lou Wood.
In a new interview, Boyd expressed her frustration: 'I heard that this girl, this actress, is going to be playing me. I might be completely wrong, but I would have thought it would be polite to mention it to me, or let me know if they've got someone who's going to be playing me. Wouldn't you think they'd let me know? But I haven't been contacted by anyone.'
Boyd, who inspired Beatles songs such as 'Something' and Eric Clapton's 'Layla', claimed she could have shared insider stories but believes the filmmakers are not interested in the truth. 'I could have really told them great stories, but I don't think they want to know,' she said. 'I think they want to create something that's completely different, like a different story. The filmmaker's creation of what they think had happened. Nothing to do with the truth.'
The four-film project, titled 'The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event', is directed by Sam Mendes, with each film focusing on one band member. Paul Mescal, Joseph Quinn, Barry Keoghan and Harris Dickinson have been cast as the Fab Four. Boyd also reflected on her marriage to George Harrison, noting that the wives of the Beatles could not trust other women who entered their circle.
She also recalled a moment of jealousy from Harrison when she appeared on a newspaper cover. 'George was rather upset one time when I was on the cover of one of the newspapers, because I was wearing whatever I was wearing, something mad, and he couldn't believe that they would put me on the paper and not him,' she said.
