Sir Elton John Couldn't Watch Bohemian Rhapsody -- Here's Why!
Sir Elton John recently revealed the biggest reason why he didn't watch the 2018 film "Bohemian Rhapsody," the biopic of his friend Freddie Mercury and the rock band Queen.
In an interview with GQ, the Rocketman said that he did not see the Freddie Mercury movie, and he has no plan in doing so in the near future.
While Elton has no problem with the portrayal of Rami Malek, he admitted he couldn't watch it because Freddie was his "derest friend."
"I couldn't see it. I couldn't watch it because I'm so close to Freddie. I've seen snippets of it and I thought that Rami Malek was fantastic, but being Freddie's dearest friend, I couldn't watch it," Elton John said.
'Dearest Friends'
Mercury and John were friends since the 1970s, a friendship circle includes their co-pop star, Rod Stewart.
Being Mercury's precious friend served as Elton's sole reason not to watch the movie since it would just relive all the painful feelings he felt when he saw Mercury fighting for his life against the dreadful disease.
Also, seeing Rami Malek -- who was the impeccable living image of Mercury -- made it even harder to see "Bohemian Rhapsody," though the actor really did well in portraying the rock band singer.
The Pinball Wizard currently has an ongoing promotion for his new autobiography entitled "Me," where he also recalled the most beautiful moments with Mercury since he never wanted to "dim" the generosity and huge heart of the late singer.
Rocketman vs. Bohemian Rhapsody
Elton John's biopic, "Rocketman," has been compared to "Bohemian Rhapsody," especially given the contrasting commercial performances of the two films.
John's "Rocketman" had low sales worth $195 million, which was not quarter near to "Bohemian Rhapsody." Mercury's film garnered a record-breaking $904 million sales last year despite criticisms about it hiding the truth and glossing over some key details in Freddie's life.
When asked if he would rather remove the drug misuse, sex and strong language of his bipic that resulted to lower ratings, John said he can't tell his life the way filmmakers did to Freddie Mercury's "Bohemian Rhapsody." However, it was not a dig to the film, as he pointed out that the film did a lot of wonder for Queen.
"I have to say, Paramount was incredibly on our side," John said about his film. "There was talk about the PG thing, but I said I can't tell my life like that. What Bohemian Rhapsody did was to prolong Queen's career and it worked in a brilliant way because their catalogue is flying."
One year after Mercury's death in 1991 due to HIV/AIDS, John and Axl Rose released "The Freddie Mercury Tribute" album to celebrate Mercury's life. The two also performed "Bohemian Rhapsody" live during the same-titled concert for the late lead vocalist of the rock band Queen.
Though Elton John was able to hold a concert for Mercury, he just really couldn't watch Mercury's biopic.
READ MORE: "He's Mentally Ill": Sir Elton John Recalls How Disturbing Michael Jackson's Presence Was
