John Lydon Rips ‘Destructive’ Sex Pistols TV Project
After recently losing a legal battle against his Sex Pistols bandmates, John Lydon is once again ripping the band’s upcoming biographical TV series.
In a message posted to his website, the man known as Johnny Rotten questioned how the band’s songs and history could be used in a project without his consent.
“I am the lead singer and songwriter, front man, image, the lot, you name it. I put it there. How is that not relevant? It is dumbfounding to me,” the rocker declared. “It is so destructive to what the band is and so I fear that the whole project might be extremely negative.”
This is not the first time Lydon has criticized the TV series, which is being helmed by Academy Award winning director Danny Boyle. In April, the outspoken Sex Pistols singer referred to the project as "the most disrespectful shit I've ever had to endure.”
"They went to the point to hire an actor to play me but what's the actor working on? Certainly not my character," Lydon declared during an interview with The Sunday Times. "It can't go anywhere else [but court.]"
Ultimately, that’s exactly where Lydon ended up after his ex-bandmates sued over the use of Sex Pistols music in the series. The ruling eventually went against Lydon, the judge citing a "band-member agreement" made in 1998 that stated decisions regarding Sex Pistols interests would be based on a majority vote.
“How can anyone think that this [project] can proceed without consulting me and deal with my personal life in this, and my issues in this, without any meaningful contact with me before the project is announced to the world,” Lydon declared in his most recent statement. “I don’t think there are even words that I can put forward to explain quite how disingenuous this is.”
The limited-run series Pistol is expected to premiere on FX in 2022.