Dexter Fletcher has been hired to replace Bryan Singer as the director of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” 20th Century Fox announced on Wednesday. Fletcher’s credits include “Eddie the Eagle” and ‘Wild Bill.”
Production on the Freddie Mercury biopic will resume next week in the U.K.
Fletcher was originally attached to direct the film, with Ben Whishaw (“Skyfall”) in the role of legendary rocker Mercury. The director left the project in March 2014 over creative differences, and eventually Singer came on board with star Rami Malek.
News of Singer’s firing from the mostly-finished film hit on Monday, when TheWrap reported on tensions between the director and studio over what numerous insiders called a “pattern” of unprofessional behavior — mostly prolonged absence and lateness, as well as conflicts with Malek.
Singer denied any misdoings and issued a lengthy response to his firing through a lawyer — saying an ailing parent pulled his focus from the project and had compromised his own health.
“I wanted nothing more than to be able to finish this project and help honor the legacy of Freddie Mercury and Queen, but Fox would not permit me to do so because I needed to temporarily put my health, and the health of my loved ones, first,” Singer said in his statement.
“I asked Fox for some time off so I could return to the U.S. to deal with pressing health matters concerning one of my parents. This was a very taxing experience, which ultimately took a serious toll on my own health. Unfortunately, the studio was unwilling to accommodate me and terminated my services,” he said.
Singer’s production company, Bad Hat Harry, has since vacated the Fox lot in West Los Angeles.
“Rhapsody” costars Mike Myers, “Game of Thrones” star Aidan Gillen and “Sing Street’s” Lucy Boynton. It remains scheduled for December 2018 release.
A London native, Fletcher began his career as a child actor in “The Long Good Friday,” “The Elephant Man” and “The Bounty,” along with hit TV series “Press Gang.” He went on to appear in a number of cult British films such as “The Rachel Papers,” “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels” and “Layer Cake.”
'Bohemian Rhapsody:' A History of Making the Freddie Mercury Biopic (Photos)
Mamma Mia Figaro! We've been anticipating a movie about the life of Queen frontman Freddie Mercury for the last seven years -- when it looked like Borat himself, Sacha Baron Cohen, might play the flamboyant singer. And at long last, we got images from the film "Bohemian Rhapsody" signaling it would finally come to pass. To add to the turmoil, Bryan Singer was even fired from the film. But the film finally opens on Nov. 2. Here's a brief history of the long road the film has taken to get made.
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September 2010
Sacha Baron Cohen, a spitting image of Mercury, is locked in to play Freddie Mercury in the untitled film written by “Frost/Nixon” scribe Peter Morgan, with Graham King, Tim Headington, Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal all attached to produce. Supposedly the film would not focus on Mercury’s battle with AIDS and would culminate in Queen’s 1985 appearance at Live Aid, six years before he died. The producers had also secured the rights to many of Queen’s hits, including “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “We Will Rock You,” “We Are the Champions” and “Another One Bites the Dust.”
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May 2012
Stephen Frears is reported as the frontrunner for the directing job on the still untitled biopic, but other directors names are still in the mix. Frears would later address his brief involvement on the film, telling The Wrap that he had met with Baron Cohen and expected to hear more, but then read that Baron Cohen had a falling out with Queen’s Brian May.
Photo by David Buchan/Getty Images For TheWrap
July 2013
Sacha Baron Cohen exits the project over creative differences; Cohen wanted a warts-and-all portrayal of Mercury’s life, while the band members wanted a more reverential portrait of themselves, even going as far as to refuse “A King’s Speech” director Tom Hooper (pictured) for the job.
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September 2013
Writer Peter Morgan told the BBC that the project was “probably not going to happen,” but that was quickly disputed when the producers said it was “still very much alive.”
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December 2013
Queen’s first choice for Mercury circa 2013 is Ben Whishaw, who had recently played Q in the Daniel Craig James Bond films. He's paired with director Dexter Fletcher, who directed the musical “Sunshine on Leith.” Queen also weighed in on why they felt Baron Cohen wasn’t right for the part. “We thought there has to be no distraction in the Freddie movie. You have to really suspend that disbelief – the man who plays Freddie, you have to really believe is Freddie. And we didn’t [think] that could really happen with Sacha.”
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December 2013
“Harry Potter” star Daniel Radcliffe shoots down “ridiculous” rumors that he would be playing Mercury in the film, following a Daily Mail report.
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March 2014
Another one bites the dust. Fletcher also departs the project over creative differences, again tied to a difference in opinion over whether to make the film R-rated or a more sanitized portrait of the band.
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November 2015
“The Theory of Everything” scribe Anthony McCarten is hired to rewrite Morgan’s initial script, and the studio starts toying with the idea of “Bohemian Rhapsody” as the film’s official title. While Whishaw’s name is still at the top of the list to play Mercury, he doesn’t have a deal in place.
Photographed by Corina Marie for TheWrap at the Thompson Toronto
March 2016
Speaking with Howard Stern, Sacha Baron Cohen revealed he “should’ve listened to the warning bells” when he claims the band envisioned Mercury dying midway through the movie and then carrying on to see the band overcome that adversity.
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April 2016
Queen’s Brian May fires back at Baron Cohen’s Howard Stern interview, telling the Daily Mail “Sacha became an a---,” even disputing Cohen’s take that they wanted to make a more PG biopic. "Why would he go away and say that we didn’t want to make a gritty film?" May said. "Are we the kind of people who have ever ducked from the truth? I don’t think so."
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November 2016
“Mr. Robot’s” Rami Malek is the latest to step into the role of Freddie Mercury with Bryan Singer attached to direct.
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September 2017
We finally get the first look at Malek as Mercury, and he looks stunning, bearing an uncanny resemblance of Mercury at Queen’s 1985 Live Aid concert. Malek also revealed that he would be singing in the film with a mix of Mercury’s own voice and was recording in Abbey Road studios. Aidan Gillen and Tom Hollander also round out the film's cast.
Entertainment Weekly
December 2017
Production halts on “Bohemian Rhapsody” due to Singer’s “unexpected unavailability,” which he said regarded a personal health matter. Days later, Fox fires Singer from the film just weeks away from wrapping production, and it’s still slated for release in December of 2018. Fox additionally closes Singer’s offices on their lot, and Singer claims he was fired because the studio wouldn’t give him time to care for a sick parent.
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December 2017
Dexter Fletcher is hired to replace Singer on the project after originally leaving the film back in March of 2014. Singer additionally told TMZ he had “no beef” with the studios or with star Rami Malek, and he spoke kindly about his replacement on the film Dexter Fletcher, but added that, “it’s my film.”
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May 2018
Fox releases the first teaser trailer for "Bohemian Rhapsody." The film was pushed to Nov. 2, 2018 in March of that year. The teaser is a glossy look at the band's rise to stardom, but it's criticized for "hetero-washing" Mercury's gay identity and for saying Mercury died of a "life-threatening illness" instead of openly saying he died of AIDS.
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November 2018
The movie finally opens in theaters -- with Rami Malek winning high praise for his performance (if not for the prosthetic teeth he uses to mimic Mercury's famous overbite). But reviews are overall tepid, with the film garnering a weak 60 percent on Rotten Tomatoes on opening day.
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From Sacha Baron Cohen’s exit to Bryan Singer’s firing, the hectic story of the upcoming Queen movie
Mamma Mia Figaro! We've been anticipating a movie about the life of Queen frontman Freddie Mercury for the last seven years -- when it looked like Borat himself, Sacha Baron Cohen, might play the flamboyant singer. And at long last, we got images from the film "Bohemian Rhapsody" signaling it would finally come to pass. To add to the turmoil, Bryan Singer was even fired from the film. But the film finally opens on Nov. 2. Here's a brief history of the long road the film has taken to get made.
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