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Nowhere Boy is a 2009 British biographical drama film, directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson in her directorial debut. Written by Matt Greenhalgh, it is based on Julia Baird's biography of her half-brother, the musician John Lennon. Nowhere Boy is about the teenage years of Lennon (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), his relationships with his aunt Mimi Smith (Kristin Scott Thomas) and his mother Julia Lennon (Anne-Marie Duff), the creation of his first band, the Quarrymen, and its evolution into the Beatles.
Following its premiere at the London Film Festival on 29 October 2009, Nowhere Boy opened in British cinemas on 26 December 2009. Nearly a year later, in October 2010, the film received its US release, coinciding with the 70th anniversary of Lennon's birth. Nowhere Boy received positive reviews from critics and was a moderate hit at the box office, earning Pound sterling4.3 million on a £1.2 million budget.
When John wants to start a rock 'n' roll band, Mimi buys him a guitar. John forms a band named the Quarrymen. At their first gig at a village fête, John meets Paul McCartney. Paul auditions and joins the band. Paul and John soon begin composing songs together. As the Quarrymen gain popularity, John meets Paul's friend, George Harrison, who becomes the band's lead guitarist.
At a birthday party which Julia throws for John, he confronts her about his absent father, Alfred Lennon. He wants to know why Julia gave him up. He also confronts Mimi, who says Julia cheated on Alf and did not want to stay with him. Alf had asked 5-year-old John to choose whom he wanted to live with. John initially chose his father, though he then wanted to stay with his mother. Without either parent having the time or money to legally determine custody, Mimi became John's Legal guardian. John is upset by this revelation, and leaves in a drunken anger.
John moves out to live on his own. Over time, he, Julia, and Mimi become friendly. When Julia is fatally hit by a car, John is consumed by anger, and physically assaults Paul and fellow bandmate Pete during Julia's wake, though the two soon forgive him. Two years later, he goes to travel to Hamburg with his newly formed band, the Beatles. Mimi asks John to call her as soon as he arrives. The film ends with the caption, "John phoned Mimi as soon as he arrived in Hamburg...and every week thereafter for the rest of his life".
Casting for the film began in September 2008.
Principal photography began in March 2009. It was shot on location in Liverpool, the last house on the right at the end of Sussex Road in Ickenham, Middlesex and at Ealing Studios in West London. Some of the interior school scenes were filmed at Sacred Heart Catholic College in Crosby. Following the announcement of the film, initial media accounts indicated that it would be based on the book Imagine This: Growing Up with My Brother John Lennon by Lennon's half sister Julia Baird. However, the credits for the completed film do not reference either the book or Baird, with sole writing credit accorded to screenwriter Matt Greenhalgh. The director consulted both Paul McCartney and Yoko Ono about the script, with both firmly correcting the depiction of Mimi to be less strict and more loving of John.
Lead actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson was in the middle of filming Kick-Ass in autumn 2008 while he was preparing to audition for the role. He stated in an interview: "I remember during my lunch breaks when I was filming ‘Kick-Ass’ that I could quickly look up on YouTube footage of Lennon and look through the scenes that I could do at the casting, and I had a day off where I could do the casting, and it was insane."
Before landing on Johnson, Taylor-Johnson wanted singer Miles Kane to play the lead, after seeing him in an interview with bandmate Alex Turner, and being struck by their Beatlesque appearance. Taylor-Johnson went backstage to a Last Shadow Puppets show and brought Kane the script, with him ultimately passing on the role.
The film received a National Lottery funding of Pound Sterling1.2 million from the UK Film Council Premier Fund, with an additional £35,500 from its Development Fund to create the script. The film also received a grant from Film4 (the film division of Channel 4).
HanWay Films represented worldwide sales. Distributor Icon Productions took the rights for the United Kingdom and Australia. Mars Distribution acquired the rights for France. The Weinstein Company distributed the film in the United States, Germany and Latin America.
In his 2013 book , Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn criticised the historical accuracy of the scene in which Lennon is forced to choose between Alfred and Julia, writing "John's 'choice' was not between his mother and father, it was between his mostly absent dad's friend's parents—in whose lives he had no place—and home and school back in Liverpool. There was no choice at all."
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