Star Confirmed as Maureen Starkey
Kent actor Mia McKenna-Bruce has officially landed a major role. She recently won the respected BAFTA Rising Star award. She’ll star in director Sam Mendes’ unique four-film project about The Beatles. McKenna-Bruce, who is from Maidstone, will play Maureen Cox Starkey, Ringo Starr’s first wife.
This casting is a big win for McKenna-Bruce. It follows her highly praised, award-winning performance in the 2023 film How to Have Sex. She now joins an outstanding group of actors for this huge series.
Key Women Cast
The actor joins three other established stars who will portray the main partners of the Fab Four:
- Saoirse Ronan (four-time Oscar nominee) as Linda McCartney.
- Anna Sawai (Emmy and Golden Globe winner) as Yoko Ono.
- Aimee Lou Wood (BAFTA TV Award winner) as Pattie Boyd.
These four performers bring the stories of the women who deeply affected The Beatles to the screen. Their roles ensure the film saga shows their views alongside the musicians’.
The male leads are confirmed as Paul Mescal (Paul McCartney), Harris Dickinson (John Lennon), Barry Keoghan (Ringo Starr), and Joseph Quinn (George Harrison).
Mendes’ Unique Four-Part Project
The project’s official title is The Beatles—A Four-Film Cinematic Event. This ambitious idea comes from Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes. He will direct four separate, but linked, feature films.
The main concept is simple: each film tells the story from the specific viewpoint of just one band member: Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, or Starr. When viewed together, these four movies will form one complete, detailed history of the band.
Crucially, The Beatles fully approve of the project. Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, plus the families of the late John Lennon and George Harrison, have granted the filmmakers full life story and music rights. This has never been given before for a scripted film about the band, meaning their famous music can be used throughout.
Sony Pictures is financing the series and will distribute it globally. All four features are currently planned for a combined release in April 2028. Sony executives have called this different release approach the “first binge-able theatrical experience.”
Maureen Cox Starkey: Fan Becomes Wife
Mia McKenna-Bruce is set to play Maureen Cox Starkey, a figure central to the band’s earliest days in Liverpool. She was a major fan of The Beatles. She met Richard Starkey (Ringo Starr) at the famous Cavern Club in 1962. At that time, she was a 15-year-old training to be a hairdresser.
Their romance grew quickly as the band rose to global fame. They married in 1965. Starr was the first Beatle to marry. They had three children – Zak, Jason, and Lee – before their divorce in 1975. McKenna-Bruce’s performance will capture the personal side of Ringo’s life during the peak of Beatlemania.
Why the Women are Crucial
Director Sam Mendes believes these women are vital figures. He has made it clear these women are not minor characters. Their own stories, he feels, are necessary to understand The Beatles’ entire journey.
Mendes shared his excitement about the cast in a public statement. He said: “Maureen, Linda, Yoko and Pattie are four fascinating and unique figures in their own right.” He also noted he was “thrilled that we’ve managed to persuade four of the most talented women working in film today to join this amazing adventure.”
The casting of Kent’s Mia McKenna-Bruce in this major project confirms its quality. With its distinct story structure, plus the unprecedented access to The Beatles’ music and a truly skilled cast, the The Beatles—A Four-Film Cinematic Event looks set to be one of the decade’s most anticipated film projects.
The film event is scheduled for 2028. It promises a deep, interconnected look at the world of the Fab Four. We will see this world through the eyes of the musicians and the notable women who were part of their lives.
