John Lennon Reportedly Told Disney to ‘F*** Off’ and ‘Get Elvis Off His Fat Arse’ When Asked to Appear in a Film

Over the years, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr all tried their hand at film acting. They all appeared in movies together, and each went on to act outside of the band. At the height of the band’s fame, Disney approached them about appearing in an animated film. Lennon reportedly didn’t mince words in his refusal.

John Lennon responded negatively to the idea of appearing in a Disney film

In 1965, Disney approached Beatles manager Brian Epstein to ask if the band would voice vultures in their adaptation of The Jungle Book. They would also sing the song “That’s What Friends Are For (The Vulture Song).” Lennon reportedly refused vehemently, tossing in a shot at his former hero, Elvis Presley, when he did so.

“There’s no way The Beatles are gonna sing for Mickey f***ing Mouse,” he reportedly said, per IndieWire. “You can tell Walt Disney to f*** off. Tell him to get Elvis off his fat arse, he’s into making crap f***ing movies.”

In the finished version of the film, the vultures appear to be a parody of The Beatles. They have mop top hair cuts and Liverpudlian accents. 

John Lennon once might have liked to have been in a film

Earlier in Lennon’s life, the opportunity to voice a character in a Disney film might have been a more exciting prospect. According to fellow artist Cilla Black, Lennon spoke frequently about his desire to become an actor.

“He talked about his songs, but the memory which stands out is the way he admitted he longed to become a famous actor one day,” Black said in the book Lennon: The Definitive Biography by Ray Coleman.

In 1967, Lennon appeared in the film How I Won the War. This was his first film role without his Beatles bandmates. He did not continue to pursue acting, however.

His opinion of Elvis sunk over the years

Lennon bitterly tossed Elvis’ name into the ring for consideration. Elvis had once been a hero of Lennon’s, inspiring him to want to pursue music in the first place. By the time Lennon was a star in his own right, though, his opinion of the American star had shifted. He thought Elvis’ music had taken a turn for the worse before The Beatles even became a group.

“Up until [1958] I thought it was beautiful music,” he said in The Beatles Anthology. “But after he went into the army, I think they cut ‘les bollocks’ off. They not only shaved his hair off; I think they shaved between his legs, too.”

In Lennon’s mind, the Elvis he admired had died on the day he joined the army.

“Elvis really died the day he joined the army,” he said. “That’s when they killed him, and the rest was a living death.”

Lennon’s opinion of Elvis was likely not buoyed by the fact that he tried to turn the American government against them.