Behind the scenes of the video Now and Then, the new Beatles single, entrusted to Peter Jackson

The legendary boyband is back 53 years after its separation. Now and Then, the long-awaited new Beatles track which brings John Lennon's voice back to life using artificial intelligence, is released this Thursday, November 2 at 2 p.m. Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney - the last surviving members of the rock group - actually lend their voices to this title. And to the delight of fans, the song is accompanied by an official music video signed by filmmaker Peter Jackson. Produced in collaboration with Apple Cords Ltd, UMe and Capitol, this is the director's first music video.

“When Apple asked me to direct the music video, I was very reluctant. I thought my next few months would be a lot more fun if this tricky task was someone else's problem,” Peter Jackson, who also directed 2021's The Beatles: Get Back , reported on the Beatles' official website. documentary series dedicated to legendary British singers. “To be honest, just thinking about the responsibility of having to make a worthy video for the band's latest song gave me a lot of anxiety,” he added.

To make the video for Now and Then, the filmmaker clarified that it had been "out of the question to use actors or computer-generated images of the Beatles" and affirmed that "every shot of the members of the group had to be authentic" . The short film thus includes previously unseen images of Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr. Archives of the rock band were also used. “Paul and Ringo shot footage of themselves performing and sent it to me. Apple has unearthed more than 14 hours of long-forgotten film, shot during the 1995 recording sessions, he said. Sean [Lennon, John’s son] and Olivia [Harrison, George’s wife] found some great unreleased home movies and sent them to me.”

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On the Beatles' official website, Peter Jackson indicated that he had called on Dhani - the son of the deceased George Harrisson, the youngest member of the Beatles - to produce a clip faithful to the atmosphere of Now and Then. “I discussed the end of the clip with him (Dhani, Editor’s note) and I described to him a vague idea that I had had. Her eyes immediately filled with tears. So that’s how we did it, the director recalled. Luckily, we found a collection of unreleased outtakes in the vault, where the Beatles are relaxed, funny and quite candid. They form the backbone of our central part, and we integrated humor into sequences shot in 2023. The result is quite crazy and gave the video the necessary balance between sadness and humor. “Even though we hope to have said a final goodbye to the Beatles, the fans will have to decide when the music video is finally released,” concluded the filmmaker.

Now And Then – The Last Beatles Song, a short film by Olivier Murray which tells the story of the rock group's last song, was shared on November 1 on YouTube. The video clip for the song Now And Then will be broadcast on Friday November 3 at 2 p.m. on the official Beatles channel.