He’s a bit of a legend in music circles, so its not surprising Jeff Buckley’s life is being turned into a movie, although I’d imagine there will be planety of musos out there ready to whine about the fact he’s going to be played by Penn Badgley, star of Gossip Girl. It’s not that Penn intrisically lacks the talent, but Gossip Girl doesn’t exactly have the hip factor many would like for a film like this.
Greetings from Tim Buckley follows the true story of the days leading up to Jeff Buckleys eminent 1991 performance at his fathers tribute concert in St. Anns Church. Through a romance with a young woman working at the concert, he comes to understand the father who abandoned him (and who died of a drug overdose in 1975). Culminating in a cathartic performance of his fathers most famous songs, Jeffs debut stuns the audience and launches his career as one of the greatest young musicians of his time. Jeff tragically also died young, drowing in a river in 1997.
Jeff Buckley said he only ever met his biological father once, at the age of eight. Indeed they were so estranged that during his youth Jeff went by the name Scott Moorhead – his middle name and his stepfather’s surname. It was only when he found his birth certificate that he discovered he was actually called Jeff, and he began using the Buckley surname after his father’s death.
Greetings From Tim Buckley was written by Daniel Algrant, Emma Sheanshang and David Brendel and will be directed by Daniel Algrant. Shooting is scheduled to begin later this year. (Source: Deadline)