John Lydon brands Danny Boyle's upcoming Sex Pistols biopic series "disrespectful"

65-year-old punk musician John Lydon has slammed Danny Boyle's forthcoming Sex Pistols biopic series as "disrespectful", claiming that production on the show went ahead without his consent.

Six-part series Pistol is being directed by Danny Boyle - the man behind Trainspotting, 28 Days Later, and Slumdog Millionaire, and is due to air on the Disney-owned US network FX on Hulu in 2022.

The biopic is based on guitarist Steve Jones’ 2018 memoir Lonely Boy: Tales From A Sex Pistol.

In an interview with The Sunday Times Magazine, John Lydon stated that he was excluded from the entire process.

"If you put me in a corner like a rat, I'm going to go for your throat. I'm up against here some corporations that just want to take over. Poor old Johnny Rotten is the victim of Mickey Mouse."

Pistol has been created for TV by Craig Pearce (The Great Gatsby) and written by Pearce and Frank Cottrell-Boyce (24 Hour Party People), with Boyle on directing and executive production duties. It began filming last month, although no official premiere date has been confirmed yet.

John Lydon – for many the ultimate punk icon in his guise of Johnny Rotten – claims that the script for the series was written without his consent and the actor cast to play him - Anson Boon - was also chosen lacking his agreement.

"Sorry, you think you can do this, like walk all over me - it isn't going to happen," Lydon remarked. "Not without a huge, enormous f****** fight."

"I'm Johnny, you know, and when you interfere with my business you're going to get the bitter end of my business as a result. It's a disgrace. I fronted this band. I'm the man that wrote the words. I supplied the image and direction, and I think the questions hang on their actions here. If they needed to be this secret squirrel about it then they must have something to hide."

A spokesman from the production told The Sunday Times Magazine that the intention had always been to communicate with John Lydon ahead of filming, and that Boyle had written to him through his management company.

Boyle "wished to speak with Mr Lydon personally about the production of Pistol...Ultimately, however, direct contact was declined," the spokesman said.

Game Of Thrones' Maisie Williams plays punk icon Jordan (AKA Pamela Rooke) in the series, alongside Babyteeth's Toby Wallace as Jones.

Iris Law will also appear as punk icon Soo Catwoman, Dylan Llewellyn (Derry Girls) as Wally Nightingale, Sydney Chandler as Chrissie Hynde and Emma Appleton (The Witcher) as Nancy Spungen.

Read Hot Press' Stuart Clark interview Lydon back in July 2018 here.