After four decades, the Beatles’ iconic documentary Let It Be will make a comeback on Disney+. The film, which had been out of circulation for years, has been meticulously restored by Peter Jackson’s team.
… Originally released in 1970, Let It Be captured the Beatles during a pivotal time in their career, showcasing their creative process and interactions as they worked on the album of the same name. Despite its significance, the film had been kept under wraps by the Beatles’ camp, making it a sought-after gem for fans.
… A restored version of the 1970 movie is coming soon to Disney+, the same service that brought fans The Beatles: Get Back, the 2021 Peter Jackson docuseries that used outtakes from director Michael Lindsay-Hogg‘s original film.
… The documentary will re-premiere on Disney+ May 8.
“Let It Be was ready to go in October/November 1969, but it didn’t come out until April 1970,” shares Lindasy-Hogg. “One month before its release, The Beatles officially broke up. And so the people went to see Let It Be with sadness in their hearts, thinking, ‘I’ll never see The Beatles together again. I will never have that joy again,’ and it very much darkened the perception of the film. But, in fact, how often do you get to see artists of this stature working together to make what they hear in their heads into songs? And then you get to the roof and you see their excitement, camaraderie, and sheer joy in playing together again as a group and know, as we do now, that it was the final time, and we view it with a full understanding of who they were and still are and a little poignancy. I was knocked out by what Peter was able to do with Get Back, using all the footage I’d shot 50 years previously.”
“I’m absolutely thrilled that Michael’s movie, Let It Be, has been restored and is finally being re-released after being unavailable for decades,” adds Jackson. “I was so lucky to have access to Michael’s outtakes for Get Back, and I’ve always thought that Let It Be is needed to complete the Get Back story. Over three parts, we showed Michael and The Beatles filming a groundbreaking new documentary, and Let It Be is that documentary – the movie they released in 1970. I now think of it all as one epic story, finally completed after five decades. The two projects support and enhance each other: Let It Be is the climax of Get Back, while Get Back provides a vital missing context for Let It Be. Michael Lindsay-Hogg was unfailingly helpful and gracious while I made Get Back, and it’s only right that his original movie has the last word…looking and sounding far better than it did in 1970.”
Let It Be, directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, stars John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, with a special appearance by Billy Preston.