Cameron Crowe has shared an optimistic update on his upcoming Joni Mitchell biopic – see what he had to say below.
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Last year, Crowe – who famously directed Almost Famous – revealed that he would be helming a biopic based on Joni Mitchell’s life and career. The film – which at the time had yet to receive a release date – has been in development for several years, with Crowe and Mitchell both working together on the project for at least two years.
Now, in a new interview with Ultimate Classic Rock, Crowe has revealed that he expects the film to release by Christmas 2025: “I’m super excited. We’re going to start in by the end of this year and hopefully have it done for Christmas next year.”
While he did not share any information on the film’s cast, or the specific periods of Mitchell’s life that the movie will explore, he likened the biopic to the 1983 Tom Petty documentary Heartbreakers Beach Party.
Crowe said of the upcoming biopic: “It’s Joni’s life, not through anybody else’s prism. It’s through her prism. It’s the characters who impacted her life that you know and a lot that you don’t know. And the music is so cinematic.”
The director also shared that he and his team have done extensive research on Joni Mitchell’s life ahead of filming: “I found a lot of the people from her early life, a lot of them are still alive. We’ve talked to them and what it was like to know Joni back then, as opposed to now. She’s the same girl from Saskatoon, you know? She’s got a lot of will and grit. It’s a life with a tale worth telling, filled with great music.”
Earlier this year, it was reported that Meryl Streep – a close friend of Mitchell – has been in talks to portray an older version of the singer-songwriter in the upcoming biopic. Neither Crowe, Streep or Mitchell have confirmed the casting.
Streep was most recently seen at Mitchell’s Joni Jam concerts in Los Angeles this past weekend. During the concerts the singer-songwriter broke out numerous rarities that had not been played live in decades, including ‘Be Cool’, ‘Hejira’, ‘Cherokee Louise’ (first time since ’95), ‘Coyote (first since ’01), ‘God Must Be A Boogie Man’ (first since 1983), ‘Sunny Sunday’ (first since 1995), and more.
She also hosted a secret star-studded jam backstage that included Elton John, Chappell Roan, Brandi Carlile, Lucy Dacus and more.
