‘Nothing off limits’: Sam Mendes to direct four Beatles films – one about each member

Director of 1917 announces ambitious project which has full approval of Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and the families of John Lennon and George Harrison

Sam Mendes, the Oscar-winning director of two of the most successful ever James Bond films, is to tackle another multimillion pound British cultural institution: the Beatles.

The director has announced that he will make four separate fiction films, one for each member of the band. The project has the blessing of Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, and of the families of John Lennon and George Harrison. It marks the first time they, and rights holders Apple, have granted full life story and music rights for a scripted film.