Sam Taylor-Johnson‘s highly-anticipated Amy Winehouse biopic “Back to Black” will be released in theaters May 2024.
The film, which stars “Industry” breakout Marisa Abela as Winehouse, will be released by Focus Features May 10. Matt Greenhalgh penned the script, reuniting with Taylor-Johnson after her 2009 film “Nowhere Boy.”
Jack O’Connell plays Winehouse’s ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil, with Eddie Marsan portraying Winehouse’s father Mitch Winehouse and Lesley Manville as her maternal grandmother.
The official synopsis reads: “‘Back to Black’ [is] a never-before-seen glimpse into Amy Winehouse’s early rise to fame and the release of her groundbreaking 2006 studio album, ‘Back to Black.’ Told from Amy’s perspective, the film is an unapologetic look at the woman behind the phenomenon and the relationship that inspired one of the most legendary albums of all time.”
Winehouse’s music was licensed for the feature, which is made with the full support of Universal Music Group, Sony Music Publishing, and The Amy Winehouse Estate. Winehouse sold more than 30 million records worldwide, and today is generating more than 80 million streams per month. The Grammy-winning singer won Record Of The Year and Song of The Year for hit single “Rehab” before dying at age 27 in 2011.
“Back to Black” was announced in July 2022 and landed at Focus Features in January 2023, shortly before production began in London. Director Taylor-Johnson spoke about her personal connection to Winehouse in a press statement.
“My connection to Amy began when I left college and was hanging out in the creatively diverse London borough of Camden. I got a job at the legendary Koko Club, and I can still breathe every market stall, vintage shop and street,” Taylor-Johnson said. “A few years later Amy wrote her searingly honest songs whilst living in Camden. Like with me, it became part of her DNA. I first saw her perform at a talent show at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in Soho and it was immediately obvious she wasn’t just ‘talent,’ she was genius. As a filmmaker you can’t really ask for more. I feel excited and humbled to have this opportunity to realize Amy’s beautifully unique and tragic story to cinema accompanied by the most important part of her legacy – her music. I am fully aware of the responsibility, with my writing collaborator — Matt Greenhalgh — I will create a movie that we will all love and cherish forever. Just like we do Amy.”
Winehouse’s father Mitch Winehouse addressed the casting of Abela earlier this year, telling TMZ that the actress is “a great choice for the role, even if she doesn’t look exactly like Amy.”
“Back to Black” is produced by Alison Owen and Debra Hayward of Monumental Pictures, with Nicky Kentish-Barnes, Ron Halpern, and Joe Naftalin executive producing on behalf of Studio Canal. The film will open in the UK April 12, with Universal Pictures International will handling international distribution outside of Studio Canal territories.
See the first look at director Taylor-Johnson and Abela on set below.
