The first image of Taron Egerton as Elton John in Rocketman has been revealed, featuring the actor looking fancy on a private jet. The Elton John biopic has been in development since 2012, back when the musician said that he wanted pop star Justin Timberlake to portray him on the big screen. The following year, Michael Gracey was tapped to direct with Tom Hardy attached to star, but it's at that point that the development stalled. It wasn't until 2017 that it was announced that Hardy was out and Egerton was in, with new director Dexter Fletcher.
Elton John has always had a very unique sense of style and that is on full display in the first photograph of Taron Egerton as the musician. By the look of the image, we're into the 70s where John has reached some success on a private jet, sporting his trademark large sunglasses. He's also wearing a golden jacket, golden winged boots with striped socks and a thin gold chain. Egerton has truly transformed into Elton John for Rocketman, complete with receding hairline.
Rocketman is going to tell the "uncensored human" story of Elton John's life, starting with his early years to his breakthrough and the drug addiction fallout, back to life on top of his game. The biopic has also been labeled as a "musical fantasy," with Jamie Bell and Bryce Dallas Howard also on board to star in the film. Dexter Fletcher is directing the movie and is no stranger to the rock music biopic having recently took over the Queen film Bohemian Rhapsody from Bryan Singer.
The specific storyline of Rocketman is not clear at this time, but we do know that Taron Egerton had to go into the studio to record some of Elton John's biggest hits before the cameras started rolling and the results were pretty spectacular, according to the movie's producer, David Furnish, who is also Elton John's husband. Furnish says that John was "blown away" by what he heard coming through the speakers after Egerton was finished. The musician must be even more taken aback by how much the 28-year old Egerton looks like he did in his younger years.
Rocketman launches into theaters on May 31st, 2019. The film was originally supposed to come out on May 17th, but it was pushed back for unknown reasons. Taron Egerton has the Elton John look down, and according to the musician, he also has the sound down, which means that the story is going to have to be pretty unique and epic to match the two components that are already complete. Rocketman will undoubtedly take the rock biopic and turn it sideways, just like what John did with classic rock back in the day. You can check out the very first look at Taron Egerton as Elton John in Rocketman below, provided by the Paramount Pictures Twitter account.
