A 'daring' Frankie Goes To Hollywood musical biopic is in the works

11 May 2023, 10:08

Frankie Goes To Hollywood fans must be loving life of late.

The iconic disco-rock band's original lineup recently reunited to kick off Liverpool's Eurovision celebrations for the first time in nearly four decades.

Now off the back of the buzz their epic reunion created, it's now been revealed that a Frankie Goes To Hollywood musical biopic is in the works.

Titled Relax, the new "daring" biopic takes its name from the band's 1983 debut hit single which topped the UK charts.

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'Relax' became an instant phenomenon, alongside the "Frankie Says Relax" t-shirt craze, making the song one of the decade's most commercially successful and controversial songs.

The biopic is being developed by UK production companies Working Title and Independent Entertainment who were behind movies like Les Miserables and the Bridget Jones series.

It will be based on frontman Holly Johnson's memoir, A Bone In My Flute, and It's A Sin breakout star Callum Scott Howell has already been cast as the band's leading man.

Luc Roeg, Tim Bevan, and Eric Fellner are due to produce the biopic, which was written by director Bernard Rose - the man who was behind the music video for 'Relax'.

In a press statement published via Deadline, Roeg said: "Frankie Goes To Hollywood were an unflinching ground-breaking band that paved the way for so many young performers today."

"We can’t think of anyone better than Bernard Rose, and our talented young lead, Callum Scott Howells, to bring this iconic moment in pop history to life."

Bernard Rose has also chipped in about how the project came to life: "Combining the wit of The Beatles, the power of The Rolling Stones, and the outrage of the Sex Pistols, Frankie Goes To Hollywood went from unemployed Liverpudlians to Kings of pop on the back of their epic banned record 'Relax'."

"Their epic rise, bringing the then deeply underground S+M and LGBTQ club scene screaming into the limelight, is the energetic and moving story of underdogs that win one for the ages," he continued.

"I was very much a part of the hoopla, having directed the original ‘banned’ ‘Relax’ video and I want to bring that innocent and daring world of 1984 back to life for a new audience today."

Details about the biopic are scant at present, but the fact that Callum Scott Howell has been cast in a leading role will excite many - he starred in Russell T Davies’s drama, It's A Sin, which was set during the height of the Aids epidemic.

Frankie Goes To Hollywood became one of the biggest bands of the 1980s after the release of 'Relax', and also received a ban by the BBC because of the overtly homosexual content.

The ban didn't stop the song's success however, as it eventually became the sixth best-selling single of all time in the UK.

The Liverpudlian group also scored number one hits with 'Two Tribes' and 'The Power Of Love', though their follow-up album didn't achieve the same success.

They eventually disbanded in acrimonious circumstances in 1987, reportedly fighting before a gig at Wembley Stadium and never speaking to each other again.

That was until this year's Eurovision Song Contest kicked off however, with the full original lineup reuniting to help put Liverpool back on the music map once again.

However, they disbanded acrimoniously in 1987 — with reports of a fight before a gig at Wembley Stadium — and didn’t perform together again until Monday night when they played one song at a concert in Liverpool ahead of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.

Casting for Relax is still ongoing, so stay tuned for further details.

Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Relax (Official Video)