Top 10 Things Rocketman Got Factually Right and Wrong

The man born Reginald Dwight didn’t grow up in the most affectionate household, something “Rocketman” doesn’t shy away from. As depicted in the film, Elton never felt supported or even loved by father, Stanley Dwight. John reflected on their difficult relationship in The Times in 2015, stating, “My father was sealed off from my talent and I never knew why.” John’s parents divorced when he was 14, leaving him to be raised by his mother, Sheila Eileen. While Sheila was the more active parent, she could also be quite cold as John recalls. The warmest parental figure throughout John’s childhood was his maternal grandmother, Ivy Sewell, who encouraged her grandson’s gifts. When he won an Oscar for “Can You Feel the Love Tonight,” John dedicated the award to Ivy, who’d died a week earlier.

In “Rocketman,” a group therapy session at a rehab facility serves as a framing device for John’s life story. While John did eventually go to rehab to combat his substance abuse and bulimia, the timeframe and circumstances were completely different: whereas the film seems to follow John’s career up until the ‘80s, the musician didn’t check into rehab until July 1990. In the film, John decided to finally seek help before a performance at Madison Square Garden, leaving the arena in full outrageous regalia and going straight to rehab. The way John recalls it, however, several factors drove him to seek help, including the death of Ryan White from AIDS. And as for that whole group therapy session, it made for great storytelling, but John’s days at rehab weren’t nearly as theatrical.

John is such an iconic solo artist that it’s hard to imagine him in a musical ensemble. Every superstar needs to start somewhere, though, and for John, it was a band called Bluesology that helped launch his music career. Forming in 1962, this English R&B group began playing in pubs with John on keys. Of course, at this point in his career, John was still going by his given name, Reginald Dwight. As seen in the film, Reggie got the first half of his stage name from a fellow member of Bluesology named Elton Dean, who primarily played saxophone. While he never became a household name like Elton John, Elton Dean did enjoy a successful career in jazz even after Bluesology disbanded in 1968.

Although it’s only touched upon in “Rocketman,” John was briefly married to a woman named Renate Blauel. Granted, the timeframe is once again off, as the film suggests their wedding took place in the late ‘70s when in reality they were married from 1984 to 1988. Nevertheless, the details of their relationship are otherwise accurate. Blauel was a recording engineer and she didn’t share a bedroom with John. Looking back on the marriage, John stated, “I wanted more than anything to be a good husband, but I denied who I really was, which caused my wife sadness, and caused me huge guilt and regret.” Blauel pretty much disappeared from the public eye following their divorce, just as she disappears from the rest of the movie.

As you might’ve noticed, “Rocketman” plays fast and loose with the timeline of John’s life – especially when it comes to his music. For example, John performs “Crocodile Rock” at the Troubadour in 1970, even though it wouldn’t be released for another two years. “Border Song” and “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” also come into play prematurely. “I’m Still Standing” serves a pivotal role in the film, marking John’s comeback and the beginning of his sobriety. In reality, John was still drugged up when this song dropped in 1983. Then again, this is a jukebox musical, meaning the music needs to drive the narrative forward thematically and convey what the characters are experiencing. So, it makes sense that the songs would rarely line up with when they were really released.

The real love story in “Rocketman” is the enduring friendship between Elton John and lyricist Bernie Taupin. Their meeting in the film almost plays out like divine intervention: John manages to impress a record label, although he makes it clear that writing lyrics isn’t his forte. He’s subsequently given a brown envelope filled with lyrics by Taupin. While the scene may seem romanticized, Elton actually recounted a similar story in a Rolling Stone interview, explaining that they really don’t collaborate when they write. In the same interview, John provided further insight into his relationship with Taupin, stating, “We’ve never had an argument about music, and I don’t think we’ve ever had a personal argument, either.” In the film, it is also claimed that Elton and Bernie virtually never fought.

One of the most humorous moments in the film sees Reginald Dwight trying to come up with a stage name on the spot. As mentioned before, the name Elton stemmed from his Bluesology bandmate, Elton Dean. According to “Rocketman,” however, the name “John” popped into Reggie’s head when he saw a photograph of the Beatles. As funny as that is, it’s also 100% wrong: Reginald actually got his new last name from another Bluesology member, Long John Baldry. Aside from the musical connection he shared with Elton, Baldry was also gay and helped John come to terms with his own sexuality. Considering Baldry played such a major part in John’s life, it’s too bad their relationship isn’t explored in the film at all.

From the very beginning of the film, little Reggie Dwight is portrayed as a child prodigy who could replicate a piece of music on piano after only hearing it once. Indeed, Reginald was a fast learner and he had a fine set of ears. At a young age, he memorized “The Skater’s Waltz” simply by listening to it. According to the biography “His Song: The Musical Journey of Elton John,” Reginald was able to play a four-page composition by Handel to near perfection, although he had only just heard the song for the first time. Reginald’s extraordinary gifts paved the way for him to attain a Royal Academy of Music scholarship at age 11 – which “Rocketman” depicts accurately.

“Rocketman” doesn’t tiptoe around Elton John’s homosexuality. As a matter of fact, this is reportedly the first big budget Hollywood feature to include an on-screen sex scene between two men. As progressive as the film is in that respect, it does neglect a period in John’s life where he identified as bisexual: in a 1976 Rolling Stones interview, 12 years before coming out as openly gay, John stated, “I haven’t met anybody that I would like to settle down with — of either sex.” John went on to confirm that he considered himself a bisexual. Although the film makes it clear that John had serious relationships with a couple of women, he’s mainly depicted publicly as a closeted gay man who never even says the word, “bisexual.”

Arguably “Rocketman”’s most shocking finds a drug- and booze-fueled Elton John standing on a diving board, announcing he’s committing suicide – and then shortly after his overdose, playing one of his most important concerts ever at Dodger Stadium. One might jump to the conclusion that a scene this dramatic would have to be a work of fiction. In 1975, however, John did ingest ~60-85 Valium during a party at his mansion, telling his guests that he that he was about to die before jumping into the pool. And, yes, it was only a couple of days before the famous Dodger Stadium show. John told The Telegraph in 2011, “I’d been working non-stop for five years. But it was typical me. There was no way I was going to kill myself doing that.”