While all Beatles fans can hardly wait for April 2028 to arrive in order to see, possibly on the same day or with a slightly more separated release, the tetralogy that Sam Mendes has dedicated to the fab four, Paul McCartney has some reservations about the project, which, as a true cinematic experience as it will be, is titled The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event. As one might have expected, the doubts of one of the living members concern the actor who will portray him, namely Paul Mescal. One moment, though: McCartney does not think that Mescal is not talented or unworthy of representing him. The issue is that he is too short, and above all shorter than the actor playing John Lennon, namely Harris Dickinson. On several occasions McCartney has stressed that he and Lennon measured the same height, and already when the film Nowhere Boy by Sam Taylor-Johnson came out, he turned up his nose because Aaron Taylor-Johnson was visibly taller than Thomas Sangster (the Paul of that film), but he made peace with it since the protagonist of that story was Lennon. With Sam Mendes however, the former Beatle protested.
Precisely about this the man spoke to Amy Poehler during an episode of Good Hang with Amy Poehler. The host and American comedian knew that the Sir Paul was and remains very sensitive on the matter, so she went straight to the point. Prodded, McCartney told her that Paul Mescal is clearly shorter than Harris Dickinson and that he had contacted Mendes to raise the issue. He added that he did not know if and how the problem would be resolved. “Guess what—” Paul said, “it’s shorter than the guy who plays John!” Then he added:
“I heard Sam Mendes was the director of the film, so I told him: ‘Sam, I need to tell you one tiny thing: Paul is a bit too short’.”
After Paul McCartney saw the images of the four actors recreating the iconic Abbey Road album cover (the one in which they cross the street in single file), his worry grew even more:
“I don’t know how Sam will solve the problem, but he sent me a photo from the set. They’re filming the Abbey Road crosswalk scene, and the Paul character is visibly shorter. So I sent him a message: ‘Sam! He’s shorter! Don’t do this to me! You told me you wouldn’t. He answered: ‘No, it’s all right: it depends on the stride,’” and sent me another photo in which they looked tall enough.”
Going online, we discovered that Paul Mescal stands 1 meter 80 in height, while Harris Dickinson reaches 1 meter 88. This means that Paul McCartney indeed has reason to worry. In any case, Joseph Quinn is another 1 meter 80 and Barry Keoghan 1 meter 73. Even the “singer” for Ringo Starr was 1 meter 73, while George Harrison measured 1 meter 78. In reality, Paul and John reached about 1.80 meters tall.
In the four biopics dedicated to the Beatles, titled The Beatles: George Harrison, The Beatles: John Lennon, The Beatles: Ringo Starr and The Beatles: Paul McCartney, and with the director filming back to back, the cast also includes Saoirse Ronan (Linda McCartney), Anna Sawai (Yoko Ono), Aimee Lou Wood (Pattie Boyd), Mia McKenna-Bruce (Maureen Starkey), Morfydd Clark (Cynthia Lennon), Lucy Boynton (Jane Asher), David Morrissey (Jim McCartney), Leanne Best (Zia Mimi), James Norton (Brian Epstein). The films tell the same events but from the point of view of each Beatle, and the writers have structured the narratives so that there is no preordained order in which to view them. Audiences will be free to choose which member to start with. Remember that this is the first time ever that Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and the heirs of John Lennon and George Harrison have granted a film production full rights to their lives and to their musical catalog.
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