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It may be evolving into a genre, but I’m not sure that the becoming school of music documentary holds all that much promise. “Becoming Led Zeppelin,” released two months ago (after playing at the Venice Film Festival four years ago and then being rescued by Sony Pictures Classics and streamlined into zippier shape), has certainly been a resounding success. Marketed as an IMAX spectacular, it has made $10 million, and it’s a captivating Zep documentary, with one major qualifier: A story-of-the-band portrait that culminates in the release of “Led Zeppelin II,” the movie can’t help but leave you with a feeling of “Damn! Are we really not going to get to Led Zeppelin’s untitled fourth record ­— a.k.a. the ‘Stairway to Heaven’ album?” It’s obviously the band’s masterpiece, and the fact that the documentary stops short of including it feels like a perverse consequence of the becoming genre.

There hasn’t been any shortage of music documentaries on big screens lately, but most are presented as special events that come in and out for one or two nights on a weekend, without settling in for a regular run. The Sony Classics release “Becoming Led Zeppelin,” though, has defied expectations of what a modern rock doc can do in cinemas, on its way to finding the favor of fans as a home video hit, too. Its success is, well, highly becoming.

Director Bernard MacMahon sat down with Variety to talk about the long process of making and then finding a buyer for the film, admitting there were plenty of companies that turned it down. The objections were plentiful, as he recalls it, when he and producer Allison McGourty were touring executive suites. But maybe most curious of all, to those who didn’t get the film, is that it...

The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie has crossed another global box office milestone during its third weekend in theaters. Despite dropping 59% this weekend, The Day the Earth Blew Up has reached the $10 million mark at the global box office, with $8 million coming from domestic earnings and $2.2 million coming from international markets. The film wasted no time becoming the highest-grossing domestic movie ever for its distributor, Ketchup Entertainment, beating Ben Affleck’s Hypnotic, the 2023 sci-fi thriller that grossed only $4.5 million domestically. The latest Looney Tunes movie is also knocking on the door of becoming one of the top 20 highest-grossing movies of the year domestically, with its $8 million total leaving it $2 million behind Becoming Led Zeppelin in the #20 spot.

The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes movie opened with $3.1 million at the box office the weekend of March 14. This was enough to earn the film a spot in the top five,...

Becoming Led Zeppelin has had an interesting story at the box office since it first arrived on screens the weekend before Valentine’s Day. The film grossed $2.5 million from only 369 theaters during its debut, giving it a per-theater gross of nearly $7,000, but then after expanding to more screens during its second weekend in theaters, it dropped 32% to $1.7 million despite then playing on over 1,000 screens. More recently, Becoming Led Zeppelin fell to $974,000 this weekend at the box office, and after also adding another $130,000 on Monday, February 24, the film has now safely passed $7.5 million at the domestic box office. Becoming Led Zeppelin has also earned $1.5 million internationally for a worldwide cumulative haul of $9 million.

Universal/DreamWorks’ “Dog Man” will hold on to the No. 1 spot as the annual slowdown in business on Super Bowl weekend is expected to take its toll.

The animated family film is earning an estimated $13.5 million in its second weekend, dropping 62% from its $36 million opening weekend. With a $54 million 10-day total, the film now will face competition from the four-quadrant “Captain America: Brave New World” and the family threequel “Paddington in Peru” next week.

Overall grosses for Super Bowl weekend reflect the trend for 2025 so far: better than last year, but still well short of pre-pandemic levels. In total, the box office has grossed an estimated $59 million this weekend, 51% up from last year’s Super Bowl weekend but 21% down from the $75 million earned in 2019 before inflation adjustment.

In second is the Sony/Screen Gems/Spyglass horror film “Heart Eyes,” which is opening to $8.5 million from 3,102 theaters. Produced by Spyglass on a reported $18 million budget,...

Sony Pictures has debuted a new trailer for the upcoming music documentary on the legendary group Led Zeppelin, ‘Becoming Led Zeppelin.’

Related: Interview – Jimmy Page, Allison McGourty & Bernard MacMahon on Becoming Led Zeppelin, the band’s new authorised documentary

The doc explores this iconic group’s origins and meteoric rise in just one year against all odds. Powered by awe-inspiring, psychedelic, never-before-seen footage, performances, and music, Bernard MacMahon’s experiential cinematic odyssey explores Led Zeppelin’s creative, musical, and personal origin story.

The film is told in Led Zeppelin’s own words and is the first officially sanctioned film of the group.

Also in trailers – “What’s going on?” Barry Keoghan stars in new trailer ‘Bring Them Down’

The documentary hits IMAX cinemas on February 5 & 6th before it hits general cinemas on February 7th.

The post New trailer drops for music documentary ‘Becoming Led Zeppelin’ appeared first on HeyUGuys.

"It was an electric atmosphere! That'd been what I'd been waiting for." Sony Pictures Classics has revealed another trailer for Becoming Led Zeppelin, a music history rock 'n roll documentary made by Bernard MacMahon. This radical look back at the early days of Led Zeppelin debuted as a work-in-progress back in 2021 and is now set for an IMAX debut in theaters February 2025. Looks like it'll be a total blast to watch! Becoming Led Zeppelin explores the origins of this iconic rock group and their meteoric rise in just one year against all odds back then. Fueled by awe-inspiring, psychedelic, never-before-seen footage, performances, music, MacMahon's experiential cinematic odyssey explores Led Zeppelin's creative, musical, and personal origin story. The film is told in Led Zeppelin's own words and is the first officially sanctioned film about 'em. "We spent five years flying back and forth across the Atlantic scouring attics and basements in...

Thanksgiving might be over, but gratitude is still in the air: The trailer for Bernard MacMahon’s Becoming Led Zeppelin is finally here.

A glimpse of the first authorized Led Zeppelin documentary can be seen below, where Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and John Paul Jones discuss forming one of the greatest rock bands of all time across archival footage and “Whole Lotta Love.”

The trailer closes with a never-before-heard interview with the late drummer John Bonham, whose 1980 death broke up the band. “The first time we played together, it was stunning,...

We’ve already gotta whole lotta love for “Becoming Led Zeppelin” — the rock documentary and concert film about one of the greatest bands ever — and that’s just based on its trailer, released Thursday.

The film itself doesn’t come out until February 7, 2025, but it could be worth the wait: Sony Pictures Classics is releasing “Becoming Led Zeppelin” exclusively into nearly 200 U.S. IMAX theaters. It will play in preview screenings across 18 markets for one night on February 5. It will then open nationwide on 1000 screens beginning February 14 (playing some Zeppelin is always a good move on Valentine’s Day).

The film, directed by Bernard MacMahon, is billed as the first “authorized” documentary on the foursome of Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, and the late John Bonham. It features a never-before-heard interview with Bonham about the band’s trajectory and legacy.

In the first trailer for the film, Bonham...

“Becoming Led Zeppelin,” a documentary that chronicles the origins and meteoric rise of the iconic English rock band, will play on the big screen in 2025.

Sony Picture Classics, which acquired the film earlier this year, plans to release “Becoming Led Zeppelin” only in Imax on Feb. 7. Ahead of the release on roughly 200 theaters, Imax will hold early access screenings in 18 markets on Feb. 5.

“The cinematic power of Imax paired with the film’s authentic sound creates an immersive and transportive viewing experience letting audiences feel like they are there, in the venues with the band,” the film’s director Bernard MacMahon said in a statement.

“Becoming Led Zeppelin” explores their origins with never-before-seen footage and commentary from the notoriously private band, consisting of Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and John Bonham. Described as a “hybrid docu-concert” movie, the doc also includes rare, unseen performances including concert halls of Led Zeppelin’s nascent tours.

"The first time we played together was stunning. It was like a gift from heaven." Sony Pictures Classics has revealed the official trailer for Becoming Led Zeppelin, a music history rock 'n roll documentary from filmmaker Bernard MacMahon. This exciting look back at the early days of Led Zeppelin first premiered at the 2024 Telluride Film Festival and it's now set for an IMAX debut in theaters February 2025. Get all your friends for a rock night out! Becoming Led Zeppelin explores the origins of this iconic group and their meteoric rise in just one year against all the odds. Powered by awe-inspiring, psychedelic, never-before-seen footage, performances, music, MacMahon's experiential cinematic odyssey explores Led Zeppelin's creative, musical, and personal origin story. The film is told in Led Zeppelin's own words and is the first officially sanctioned film on the group. They add: "The filmmakers were up against epic challenges, including the fact...

WAarning: Spoilers for Batman: Gotham by Gaslight - The Kryptonian Age #5!Batman may have just taken his coolest mode of transport to date on its maiden voyage: The Bat-zeppelin. Beyond its undeniable aesthetic appeal, this mode of transport speaks volumes about just how immensely wealthy the Gotham by Gaslight Batman is. It also injects some subtle humor into the story, highlighting Bruce Wayne's flair for theatrics and the ridiculousness of his "secret" identity.

In Batman: Gotham by GaslightThe Kryptonian Age #5, Andy Diggle, Leandro Fernndez, and Matt Hollingsworth debut the Dark Knight's Bat-Zeppelin. While fans know that Brian Augustyns original Gotham by Gaslight story was set in 1889, this Zeppelin introduction situates The Kryptonian Age in the early 1900saligning with the first flight of a Zeppelin in 1900.

This timeline assumes historical accuracy applies to the narrative, though, as liberties are sometimes taken in alternate DC timelines. Regardless, its exciting to...

The chance for the public to see the long-awaited documentary “Becoming Led Zeppelin” is finally becoming a reality for fans of the classic rock band. The film has been acquired for release by Sony Classics Pictures, and will get a big-screen theatrical rollout, the company announced Wednesday.

The rights picked up by Sony Classics are for North America, Latin America, Southeast Asia (except for Japan), the Middle East and Benelux. Negotiations for the deal took place between Sony Classics, director Bernard MacMahon and Altitude Film Sales.

No time frame was given for the film’s release, but Zeppelin fans have waited for years, so a possible matter of months may come as good news at this point. A rough version of the film premiered at and was reviewed out of the Venice Film Festival in September 2021, before it seemed to slip into limbo, as far as the general public knew.

Sony Pictures Classics has acquired Bernard MacMahon’s hybrid docu-concert film Becoming Led Zeppelin, taking all rights in North America, Latin America, the Middle East, Southeast Asia (excluding Japan), and Benelux.

Powered by never-before-seen footage, performances and music, the film is billed as an experiential cinematic odyssey exploring Led Zeppelin’s creative, musical, and personal origin story. It’s told in Led Zeppelin’s own words and is the first officially sanctioned film on the group.

Screening as a work-in-progress at the 2021 Venice Film Festival, where it received a 10-minute standing ovation, the film now features a brand-new sound mix, newly unearthed material from the archives of all four band members (including home movies and family photos), and exclusive interviews with Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, and John Paul Jones, as well as never-before-heard interviews with the late John Bonham.

Written by MacMahon and Allison McGourty, the film was produced by...

Nick Cannon thinks he has quite an interesting superpower.

The father-of-12 claims he has “super sperm” after explaining that his previous bedmates have become pregnant despite using birth control.

The TV presenter, 42, was a guest on the “Howie Mandel Does Stuff” podcast, where he stated: “I’m gonna be honest, I got some super sperm or something, ’cause I’ve practiced birth control, and people still got pregnant.

“I’m trying to be as responsible as I possibly can, learning lessons…”

Read More: Nick Cannon Insists ‘Fatherhood Is My Number One And First Priority’: ‘I Believe That’s What We’re Put On This Planet Here To Do’

When asked if he’s finished adding kids to his massive family, Cannon responded: “I guess… yeah? I don’t wanna say yeah, and then, like, you know, it’s the reproductive system… it could happen at any time… I’m good with my dozen.

For a band that’s now thought of as the Beatles of heavy metal, not to mention one of the four or five greatest rock ‘n’ roll bands of all time, Led Zeppelin got shockingly little critical respect back in the day. You could say that sort of thing happens a lot — in music (just look at the reverence with which Abba are now regarded; in their heyday they were often dismissed as facile creators of pop jingles) or in movies. But in the case of Led Zeppelin, there’s something uniquely telling about the vast chasm between the way they were viewed by their fans and by the gatekeepers of respectability in rock. And that helps to explain why Zep, 50 years on, still sound so raw and explosive and primal and volcanic.

What you hear in their music, as incandescent as a lot of it can be, is a quality that might be described,...

“Becoming Led Zeppelin,” the first fully fledged documentary portrait of rock gods Led Zeppelin, has been added to the Venice Film Festival lineup and will play out of competition.

Bernard MacMahon (“American Epic”) directed the film, which is the first time the band had participated in a documentary in 50 years, telling the story of Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, John Bonham and Robert Plant and how they would bring a whole lotta love to the world.

MacMahon stages it not as a concert doc in the vein of the iconic 1976 film “The Song Remains The Same” but almost as a fantastical musical, which he says was in part inspired by “Singin’ in the Rain.”

“Becoming Led Zeppelin” starts its focus on each member of the band individually and how they went from playing small clubs throughout Britain in the ’60s until they met in the summer of 1968 for a rehearsal...

A whole lotta love is headed to the Venice Film Festival, which has just added the highly anticipated Led Zeppelin feature documentary to its lineup.

Bernard MacMahon’s “Becoming Led Zeppelin,” which was recently completed, will screen out of competition at the Italian fest, which runs from Sept. 1-11. The film was co-written and produced by Allison McGourty, and features band members Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and Robert Plant as themselves, as well as the late John Bonham (who died in 1980).

The project, which was first announced in 2019, has unprecedented access to the band, marking the first and only time the group has participated in a documentary in 50 years. Though 1976 doc “The Song Remains the Same” centred on the band, that was largely a concert film of a series of Madison Square Garden performances in 1973.

The doc — which is being shopped globally by Altitude Film Sales and Submarine — traces...

Filmmaker Bernard MacMahon has announced the title for his new documentary on Led Zeppelin, Becoming Led Zeppelin.

“Becoming Led Zeppelin is a film that no one thought could be made,” MacMahon said in a statement. “The band’s meteoric rise to stardom was swift and virtually undocumented. Through an intense search across the globe and years of restoration of the visual and audio archive found, this story is finally able to be told.”

A release date for Becoming Led Zeppelin has yet to be revealed.

Becoming Led Zeppelin was first...

Hammer of the Docs? Led Zeppelin is getting the feature doc treatment from the team behind American Epic.

The as-yet-untitled film, which is currently in post-production, comes after the band’s fiftieth anniversary last year. The doc, directed by Bernard MacMahon, will launch in Cannes with CAA representing the U.S. rights and Altitude handling international sales.

The film will trace the journeys of the four members of the Stairway To Heaven rockers through the music scene of the 1960s and their meeting in the summer of 1968, culminating in 1970 when Led Zeppelin II, with “Whole Lotta Love,” knocked The Beatles off the top of the charts and launched the career of what would become the biggest band in the world.

The doc will feature new interviews with Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, and John Paul Jones, as well as rare archival interviews with the late drummer John Bonham. The film will...

Continuing its investment in Spanish originals, Netflix has unveiled five new projects which will launch on the service worldwide in 2020. In various stages of development and production, they include superhero comedy El Vecino (The Neighbor), based on the graphic novels by Santiago Garcia and Pepo Perez. Colossal and Timecrimes filmmaker Nacho Vigalondo directs the series from Elite‘s Zeta Audiovisual.

Also in the mix, Elite‘s co-creator, Carlos Montero, has a new project in the works for Netflix. El Desorden Que Dejas (The Mess You Leave Behind) is a psychological drama based on Montero’s own award-winning novel.

There are two female-centered series to come including dramedy Valeria based on the novels by Elísabet Benavent, and Días De Navidad (Christmas Days) starring Fortitude‘s Verónica Echegui, Las Chicas Del Cable‘s Anna Moliner and High Heels‘ Victoria Abril.

The fifth project announced today is an anime adaptation of the best-selling...

Berlin — Netflix has unveiled five new Spanish original series, including titles by well-known film director Nacho Vigalondo (“Timecrimes”) and Pau Freixas, executive producer of Spanish breakout “The Red Band Society.”

The new titles see the streaming giant near doubling the number of new and returning scripted series it has in development and production in Spain from six to 11.

Marking its first collaborations with two classic Spanish production houses, Filmax and Plano a Plano, the new series sees the streaming giant still still predominantly targeting women and YA viewers, but brings a far larger variety of series types to the mix.

Announced on the eve of the 2019 Berlin Film Festival, to which Netflix brings a powerful at least 49 executive delegation, and has its first movie ever playing in competition, Isabel Coixet’s “Elisa & Marcela,” the five series announcement marks yet another powerful statement of Netflix’s ambitions in Europe and...

Continuing its investment in local-language production in Europe, Netflix has unveiled five new series in development in Spain for launch on the platform starting in 2020.

The shows span a range of genres, including a new school-set drama by the co-creator of hit Netflix series Elite, an anime series produced by Endemol Shine’s Zeppelin, a superhero comedy from genre creator Nacho Vigalondo, a female-centered dramedy and a mini-series featuring a blend of veteran and up-and-coming Spanish leading ladies.

“At Netflix, we want to produce local stories with a global appeal, and Spain has constantly generated amazing television both for ...

In Almost Famous, the 2000 film inspired by Cameron Crowe’s years as a teenage music journalist, one fictional Seventies rocker warns another about talking to a Rolling Stone reporter. “It’s Rolling Stone,” he says. “The magazine that trashed ‘Layla,’ broke up Cream, ripped every album Led Zeppelin ever made!”

Rolling Stone had, in fact, panned Zeppelin’s first two albums. “The latest of the British blues groups so conceived offers little that its twin, the Jeff Beck Group, didn’t say as well or better three months ago,” wrote...