What if the Beatles never existed and you were the only one who remembered?
In short: In the 2019 film Yesterday, a struggling musician wakes up in a parallel universe where the Beatles never existed. He achieves global fame by passing their legendary catalog off as his own, but the film’s journey from a 2012 screenplay to a $154.6 million box office success was far from simple.
The film originated from a 2012 screenplay titled Cover Version by American writer Jack Barth. Barth, who had spent decades struggling to sell scripts, conceived the story after wondering what would happen if he invented Star Wars in a world where it did not exist. While his original draft was a meditation on professional disappointment, the project was eventually acquired by producer Working Title and handed to British filmmaker Richard Curtis. Curtis rewrote the story into a romantic comedy, a process that later sparked a dispute over creative credit and financial compensation.
Director Danny Boyle joined the project in 2018, casting Himesh Patel as the lead after being moved by his soulful performance of Beatles songs during auditions. The production secured the rights to the band's music for approximately $10 million, with approval from the surviving Beatles and their families. The film features a unique premise that has appeared in other works, such as the 2010 Japanese manga I'm a Beatle, though Boyle stated he was unaware of these similarities during development.
Upon its release in June 2019, the film received mixed reviews, holding a 63% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics praised the chemistry between Patel and co-star Lily James, though some found the narrative under-explored. Beyond the screen, the film faced an unusual legal challenge: a class-action lawsuit from fans who felt misled by a trailer featuring actress Ana de Armas, whose scenes were ultimately cut from the final edit. The suit was eventually dropped with prejudice in 2024, concluding a strange chapter in the film's history.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Yesterday (2019 film)
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