Bon Jovi ‘Thank You, Goodnight’: Over 100 Hours of Footage Filmed For Epic Hulu Documentary [Exclusive]
Bon Jovi fans eagerly anticipate Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story, a Hulu documentary celebrating the band’s 40-year career. Director Gotham Chopra had access to thousands of Jon Bon Jovi’s personal artifacts. He used these to flesh out details of the band’s journey to the top of the charts.
Chopra revealed exclusively to Showbiz Cheat Sheet that his biggest challenge was whittling down all that information to create a cohesive four-part documentary fascinating to both casual and dedicated Bon Jovi fans.
Bon Jovi’s 40-year history amounted to a massive collection of material
Gotham Chopra, the director of Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story, has a long history of creating cohesive stories from generational careers. The production team behind the documentary is Religion of Sports, founded by Chopra, Michael Strahan, and Tom Brady.
Before Thank You, Goodnight, Chopra worked on documentaries detailing the lives of some of the most iconic sports figures in current history. These include Man in the Arena, Tom vs. Time with Brady, and In The Arena: Serena Williams, McGregor Forever, Simone Vs. Herself, Stephen Vs. The Game, and more.
Thank You Goodnight encapsulates 40 years of Bon Jovi’s history into a cohesive look at the band’s past. Gotham admitted that he shot over 100 hours of material, which was edited into four hours.
Chopra says, “It’s a massive amount of material. I mean, it’s a blessing and a curse. I would guess it’s probably 100 hours of shooting stuff. And then that’s not even counting the archive.”
“Jon [Bon Jovi] captured a lot of it. I had access to his personal archive,” Chopra explains of the personal detail that went into the addition of never-before-seen photographs and interviews with those closest to Jon and the band. “People love this band,” Chopra added. “They’ve grown up with them; therefore, this documentary had to honor that.”
“Therefore, all of this required time and much input beyond myself. It was essential to get trust from Jon. He gave that pretty early on.”
The documentary’s unprecedented access to Bon Jovi allowed for raw, unfiltered footage
Thank You Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story is a story about humanity. Each member dreamed of achieving their own goals, and together, Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Alec Jon Such, David Bryan, and Tico Torres did just that.
Thank You Goodnight also delves into the stories of other members of the group who have since become integral to the band’s history, including Hugh McDonald, Bobby Bandeira, Phil X, John Shanks, and Everett Bradley. But today, the band’s future as a live band comes into question after Jon’s vocal trauma could hinder any large-scale tours.
The Hulu documentary doesn’t shy away from this story. For two years, Chopra followed Jon, who tried every medical and holistic intervention to overcome vocal trauma.
“There was just a current thread of, OK, John’s going through something. This is interesting; this feels like it needs to be followed,” he explains. The documentary doesn’t gloss over the Bon Jovi frontman’s frustration as it looks back at the road that made him a superstar.
“I think that’s really important to me as a storyteller. Also, Jon is a really smart guy,” he continued. “I wanted to celebrate this thing that he built.”
“This can’t be some vanity piece. This can’t be you pulling the strings behind the scenes, and while I want you to say, ‘I want this, and I want that, and like this has to be honest, this has to be real,’ it also has to be authentic, warts and all, and it was,” Chopra concluded.
When will ‘Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story’ stream?
Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story will stream on Hulu beginning April 26. It is four parts in total.
In total, Bon Jovi has sold over 130 million albums and performed in over 50 countries for more than 40 million fans. Bon Jovi was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in recognition of the band’s impact on popular music for four decades.
In June 2009, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame for their contribution to the industry with songs such as You Give Love a Bad Name and I’ll Be There For You. Jon’s Bon Jovi Soul Foundation addresses homelessness, hunger, and environmental issues in America.
