Barry Keoghan, who will play Ringo Starr in an upcoming biopic, has encountered the real deal.
“I met him at his house, and he played the drums for me,” the actor told Jimmy Kimmel on Wednesday’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live. “He asked me to play, but I wasn’t playing the drums for Ringo.”
Kimmel asked if he was just watching the former Beatles drummer to see what he could absorb, and Keoghan said he was.
“And when I was talking to him, I couldn’t look at him,” Keoghan explained. “I was nervous, like right now. But he’s like, ‘You can look at me.'”
As starstruck as he was, Keoghan knew it was his job to take in everything.
“My job is to observe and kinda taken in mannerisms and study him,” Keoghan said. “I want to humanize him and bring feelings to it and not just sort of imitate.”
The actor noted that he’s also been practicing his drumming in preparation for the role and that he found Starr to be “absolutely lovely.”
Director Sam Mendes broke the news earlier this month at CinemaCon that he had cast the four separate movies he’s making — one for each member of the Beatles. In addition to Keoghan as Starr, fans will see Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, and Joseph Quinn as George Harrison. Mendes said in his announcement that the separate films would enable the examination of the “four very different human beings” in the group.
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The movies will be released simultaneously in April 2028.
Kimmel had reassured Keoghan that he had spoken to Starr after the announcement and he was “very happy” to have Keoghan playing him.
As long ago as November, when it was officially only a rumor that Keoghan would play the role, Starr seemed to offer his blessing. “Well, Barry’s great,” Starr said in an interview with ET. “I believe he’s somewhere taking drum lessons. And I hope not too many.”
Meanwhile, Keoghan can be seen in Hurry Up Tomorrow, releasing May 16 and starring The Weeknd and Jenna Ortega. He also reunites with American Animals writer-director Bart Layton for 2026 release Crime 101, which also stars Chris Hemsworth, Halle Berry, and Mark Ruffalo.
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