Filmmaker Danny Boyle knew he’d found the star of his new Beatles movie as soon as Himesh Patel played the Fab Four’s Back In The U.s.s.r. at his audition.
The Oscar winner had seen his leading man in a short film years before but he didn’t clock what a talent he was until he sang for him.
“They brought in this guy, saying he’s on (TV show) EastEnders,” Boyle tells WENN. “I don’t watch the show regularly, but I had seen him. I was a judge on the short-film section of a festival, called Shuffle, which one of my daughters runs. I picked Two Dosas, a 15-minute short, which Himesh was the lead in – it was very funny.
“He played U.S.S.R on acoustic guitar in his audition, and it was one of those ‘bing’ moments. As soon as he sang it, I knew. There were other more obvious candidates for the role, but I knew then, ‘That’s him’. It was like I’d never heard that song, a song I loved, before. He’d taken it over.
“He was utterly respectful with the Beatles’ songs, and yet free with them as well. It wasn’t some karaoke version that tries to be clever. It felt like you were hearing the song afresh. There was something about Himesh that the songs just belonged to him.”
In the new film, Yesterday, Patel plays a man who realises he’s the only person on earth who can remember the Beatles and their songs.
Back in the U.S.S.R. helped Himesh Patel land Yesterday gig
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