Sir Elton John at the premier of his documentary, "Elton John: Never Too Late". Picture: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images
Disney+ debuted the official trailer for the upcoming original documentary Elton John: Never Too Late.
The trailer shows archive concert footage from his career, his candid reflection on his rise to success, the personal challenges he faced, and how his family has changed him.
The documentary follows Sir Elton as he looks back on his life and the astonishing early days of his 50-year career in this emotionally charged, intimate and uplifting full-circle journey.
The original documentary from Disney Branded Television is produced by Rocket Entertainment and This Machine Filmworks (a part of Sony Pictures Television) and is directed by R.J. Cutler and Elton’s husband David Furnish.
Cutler and Furnish also serve as producers alongside Trevor Smith. Elise Pearlstein, Mark Blatty, Luke Lloyd Davies, Rachael Paley, Jane Cha Cutler, and John Battsek serve as executive producers.
The original documentary will premiere 13 December 2024 on Disney+.
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As he prepares for his final concert in North America at Dodger Stadium, Sir Elton takes viewers back in time and recounts the extraordinary highs and heartbreaking lows of his early years and how he overcame adversity, abuse and addiction to become the icon he is today.
The Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour played to audiences around the world between 2018 and 2023, longer than expected due to delays enforced by the pandemic.
Using the stadium as a common denominator allows the film’s timeline to jump back and forth and explore how Sir Elton and the society around him have changed over the decades.
The most obvious difference is the attitude towards homosexuality.
Sir Elton said he was bisexual in a 1976 interview with Rolling Stone. He reflects in the film that being open about his sexuality hurt his career.
But today, he is one of millions of gay people around the world who have the right to marry and start families.
Sir Elton also doesn’t shy away from admitting his drug use at the height of his fame, and the negative impact it had on his songwriting.
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The film recently premiered at the London Film Festival and received mixed reviews.
Variety said “the original King of Pop gets the satisfying documentary he deserves”, but the Guardian described it as a “thin portrait of a musical genius”.
The tour footage is interspersed with archive material focusing on Sir Elton’s popularity earlier in his career, particularly in the 1970s.
Furnish and Sir Elton were among the guests attending the film’s London premiere at the Royal Festival Hall on Thursday.
The doccie’s release follows a biopic, Rocketman, which came out in 2019 and starred Taron Egerton as Sir Elton.
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