KINGSTON, Jamaica – Being a free-spirited Rastaman from Jamaica, Bob Marley was different than American and European stars of the 1970s. Getting things right for any biopic on the reggae legend would be critical.
Wayne Jobson, whose family knew Marley well, says they worked hard to make the Paramount Pictures movie accurate.
“When I meet kids nowadays and tell them that I knew Bob, they are in awe as if I said I met Ghandi or Martin Luther King. They know Bob’s music, but they don’t know the spirit of the man. I think this film will show the real spirit of Bob,” he stated.
Jobson was on location for the Jamaican leg of the yet-titled movie in parts of Kingston. Scenes were filmed in Trench Town where Marley once lived. Additionally, National Heroes Park was used for the National Stadium where the epic One Love Peace Concert took place in April, 1978.
Marley — who died at age 36 from cancer in May, 1981 — was headliner for that show. That performance saw him returning to Jamaica for the first time since he was shot by gunmen at his Kingston home in December, 1976.
Marley’s eldest son Ziggy is producer of the movie which stars British actor Kingsley Ben-Adir. It is directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, the African-American who had a similar role for the Oscar-winning biopic King Richard.
“Neville Garrick, Bob’ s confidant, has been on every day of the shoot and has guaranteed that it will be authentic. There was even a scene where Bob was going to share his spliff (marijuana cigarette) with Peter Tosh. But Garrick made them change it so that Bob gave Peter a spliff, as Rastas don’t share spliffs,” Jobson disclosed. “Also, Ziggy Marley was on the shoot every day, and he made them change anything that his father would not say. Bob is an evangelist. He is not a pop artist like Elvis, so everything has to be spiritual and righteous.”
It is estimated that Paramount Pictures spent $18 million on the Jamaican shoot, with over 100 persons employed throughout the week-long production.
The movie will be released in 2024. It tells the story of Marley’s journey from Jamaica to London in late 1976. There, he recorded his famous album, Exodus, which was released a year later.
Jobson’s family is closely connected to Marley and Chris Blackwell’s Island Records. This label distributed seven of the singer/songwriter’s studio albums, including Exodus.
His cousin Diane Jobson, who is portrayed in the movie, was Marley’s lawyer. Her brother Dickie Jobson was once the artist’s manager.
