Andre 3000 moves forward with Jimi Hendrix film without the music

Charles Cross says that Andre 3000 has been trying to put a Jimi Hendrix biopic in motion for about 10 years. (AP Photos)

Andre 3000 has been trying to make a movie about Jimi
Hendrix for nearly 10 years, and now its reported that
he’s moving forward with the project – without the music
rights.

Jimi Hendrix biographer Charles Cross says that a great
film about the Seattle music legend can be done without
music. Cross also acknowledged that Hendrix’s estate is
complicated.

“A term like family comes with an asterisks and a foot
note.” Who owns the music has been frequently disputed in
court, and Cross estimates as much as $30 million in legal
fees has been spent on claims to the rights of Hendrix
originals.

That doesn’t mean that Andre 3000 can’t move forward with
the movie, but it is why it might not contain any original
tunes. Since reports have said the movie will focus on
Hendrix’s life leading up to “Are You Experienced?” it is
questionable how producers will feature the proper
soundtrack.

Cross says Hendrix’s story isn’t an easy one to tell. A
local filmmaker made a fairly well done movie about
Hendrix just hanging out in London, according to Cross. He
said it’s far better than a film actually authorized by
the Hendrix estate for Showtime about 15 years ago.

But Cross said the most important questions for the film
moving forward are, ‘Is there a great script? Is there a
great story?’ He said there will always be attempts to
tell Hendrix’s story, but until a Scorsese comes along,
that might not happen.

Cross’ suggestion for a film?

“There is a huge part of his story that has rarely been
told and that few people out of the Central District even
know. So you hope that one day they’ll be able to capture
that.”