Ziggy Marley and his family spent years looking for the right partners to make a biopic about his father, reggae legend Bob Marley. They wanted to ensure it would be authentic and respectful.
“It was just a feeling,” Ziggy Marley said of getting his father’s life on screen in a recent interview with The Associated Press. “We explored it without knowing that we definitely wanted to do it because we needed to make sure that the people we did it with was the right people. People who respected what we wanted to do, the culture, the authenticity that we wanted.”
The resulting film “Bob Marley: One Love” focuses on a pivotal period from 1976-1978 when Bob survived an assassination attempt in Jamaica, went into exile in London where he produced the album “Exodus”, was diagnosed with cancer, and returned for the famous One Love concert.
The movie has been a box office hit, making $80 million globally in its opening weekend. Critics’ reviews are mixed but audiences responded enthusiastically.
“It’s such a rewarding validation of the thing that we set out to do,” said Mike Ireland, the co-president of Paramount Motion Picture Group. “The audience is the ultimate arbiter of every movie and everything you put into the world. And to have them respond in that way? It’s just fantastic.”
The film aimed to capture Bob Marley’s life accurately. The script came from stories from Ziggy Marley, Bob’s widow Rita, and others close to him. It was shot in Jamaica with a primarily local cast and crew. Actor Kingsley Ben-Adir took voice and guitar lessons to portray Bob authentically.
“I’m a movie guy,” multi-Grammy winner Ziggy Marley said. “My selfish goal was to have a movie that had entertainment and action. I said to them, ‘I don’t want a boring movie.’ And this period of time was the most active and entertaining.”
The movie balances showing Bob Marley as a real, flawed person while also highlighting his iconic music and message of unity. The Marley family hopes it will give audiences a sense of intimacy and insider access to the late musical legend.
“Kingsley did a good job,” Ziggy Marley said. “He did the work. He really studied.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report