Metal, Hardcore, Indie, Rock
The upcoming documentary “Di’Anno: Iron Maiden’s Lost Singer,” which will be produced by Cleopatra Entertainment this summer, will honor the life and career of groundbreaking heavy metal leader Paul Di’Anno, the powerful voice heard on Iron Maiden’s early albums, as per Blabbermouth. Wes Orshoski, co-director and producer of the critically acclaimed 2010 film “Lemmy” about the Motörhead icon and the 2015 film “The Damned: Don’t You Wish That We Were Dead” about punk rock legends The Damned, depicts the late singer on an emotional rollercoaster near the end of his life in a remarkably raw and personal film.
The movie, which includes appearances by James Hetfield (Metallica), Gene Simmons (Kiss), Steve Harris of Maiden, and members of Exodus, Slayer, Megadeth, Overkill, and Sepultura, tells the story of how two fans of Iron Maiden meet Di’Anno when he is at his lowest and decide to help him get well and resume his career. Wheelchair-bound since the mid-2010s, Di’Anno‘s health plummeted during the COVID-19 pandemic. After those two fans started a crowdfunding campaign, he moved to Croatia, where, with the support of those fans and doctors, he made a dramatic recovery while running out of money, getting back together with his former Maiden bandmates, and falling in love.
He eventually returns to the stage in a brave and dramatic manner. Orshoski started filming “Di’Anno: Iron Maiden’s Lost Singer” in 2017, and it captures all of this.
For years there wasn’t much to capture, Paul was waiting for surgeries that doctors in the U.K. would not green-light. He was in an incredibly dark place. But once he got to Croatia, fans and doctors gave him the hope he was desperately searching for. It was beautiful to witness. I wanted to make a film that was unlike any rock doc you’ve ever seen. And in the end, I think we got there. – Wes Orshoski
