Real Music People

Two Bob Marley projects are in the works but only one will be able to use the icon’s music. The family of the reggae legend has a long-standing policy of not licensing his music to any film or TV project where an actor portrays the musician. And that included the Weinstein Co.’s planned adaptation of Rita Marley’s (Bob’s wife) ‘No Woman, No Cry’. It’s kind of ironic considering she’s an executive producer. Martin Scorsese is set to direct an as yet unnamed documentary on the legend which the Marley family supports. Bob’s son Ziggy goes to say that “We believe that this project is the best way to represent our father’s life from his perspective and any other film project pertaining to our father will be empty without his music to support it.”

Bob Marley’s family are snubbing music licensing requests for a biopic on the legend because they are planning to release a competing documentary.

The adaptation of Marley’s widow Rita’s book ‘No Woman, No Cry: My Life With Bob Marley’ is currently in production by The Weinstein Company, but now the reggae hero’s family are refusing to license any material.

The family have sided with director Martin Scorsese, making a documentary together with the Marley-owned Tuff Gong Pictures, says the Hollywood Reporter.

The family members involved in the Scorsese project claim they were unaware the Weinstein biopic would be unveiled so soon and believe that its projected late-2009 release date would interfere with the documentary’s February 2010 release – timed to coincide with Marley’s birthday.

Executive producer, Ziggy Marley, says, “The Weinstein project has put our documentary into jeopardy. All our efforts and support are currently directed toward the documentary. We believe that this project is the best way to represent our father’s life from his perspective, and any other film project pertaining to our father will be empty without his music to support it.”

The Marley family’s lawyer Terri Dipalo denied that this was the latest move is a negotiating tactic to compel the Weinsteins to buy Marley music rights.