Aegean Film Festival: Danny Boyle – Feature Film (Audience Award)
Montclair Film Festival: Danny Boyle – World Cinema

John Lennon: You want a good life? It’s not complicated. Tell the girl you love that you love her. And tell the truth to everyone whenever you can.

Ellie: Miracles happen all the time!
Jack: Like what?
Ellie: Benedict Cumberbatch becoming a sex symbol!

Ed Sheeran: Nice to meet you.
Jed: You look like Ed Sheeran.
Ed Sheeran: I am Ed Sheeran.
Jed: Oh, right. Well done.

Ellie: How did I get in the wrong column? How did I get in the “friend, manager, roadie” column, instead of the “And I Love Her” column?
Jack: Oh, god. There’s definitely columns?
Ellie: Well, a girl can certainly tell the difference.

Nick: There’s this problem with musicians: they have this encyclopedic knowledge of obscure pop, make you feel stupid when you haven’t heard a band. Like Neutral Milk Hotel, or The Monophonics, or — in this case — the Beatles.

Ed Sheeran: I do have a suggestion, though. Um, about the song. The title, Hey Jude. Jude is just, it’s a bit old-fashioned. That was the kid’s name, right?
Jack: What kid?
Ed Sheeran: That the song’s about.
Jack: Oh, the kid, the kid, the kid. Yes, the sad kid.
Ed Sheeran: Now, let me just give you this advice, right? Song title. I won’t charge you a penny for it as well. Hey Dude.

• Himesh Patel did all his own singing and playing in the movie.
• Screenwriter Richard Curtis asked for Paul McCartney’s approval of the film’s title. Sir Paul gave his blessing, but also suggested they call it “Scrambled Eggs” instead. This was a lighthearted reference to the fact that before writing the lyrics to Yesterday, McCartney used the temporary lyrics “Scrambled Eggs” as a placeholder.
• Sony holds the publishing rights to The Beatles’ catalog. Legally, the filmmakers only needed Sony ATV’s permission to use the songs. On principle, they sought the blessings of Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono, and Olivia Harrison for the film.
• When Jack first performs “Yesterday,” his friends claim that it is not as good as Coldplay. Ed Sheeran’s role was originally intended for Chris Martin, the lead singer of Coldplay, who could not do it due to scheduling conflicts, so it was then offered to Sheeran. The joke was left in the script.
• Some of the characters share their names with The Beatles’ songs: Rocky, the roady/temporary manager, is named for “Rocky Raccoon,” Ellie, Jack’s love interest, is named for “Eleanor Rigby,” which also happens to be the one song that Jack has trouble remembering, and Ellie’s surname is Appleton. The Beatles founded their record label Apple Records, and Ellie’s roommate, Lucy, is, of course, “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.”
• Leading up to the dramatic event during the blackout, the unnerving music is the crescendo from “A Day in the Life.” It is used again later on in the film.
• One of the band posters in Jack’s bedroom is for The Fratellis, who took their name from the criminal gang in The Goonies (1985), one of director Danny Boyle’s favorite movies.