Trivia

• Sacha Baron Cohen was the original choice to play Freddie Mercury with Stephen Frears to direct. He left the project due to creative differences with the band's guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor who have the control over the music and film rights . The deal with Baron Cohen fell apart after May voiced upset after finding that the project would only be a biopic of Mercury and not the rest of Queen. May felt that it should focus on the other members and the aftermath of Mercury's death. They didn't like the original draft by writers Stephen J. Rivele and Christopher Wilkinson that was considered by Baron Cohen to be a historically accurate, outrageous portrayal of Mercury that does not shy away rough edges of the story including his well-documented homosexual encounters and promiscuity. May was very negative about Baron Cohen, whom he felt was too much of a comedic actor to do Mercury dramatic justice.

Goofs

• "Fat Bottomed Girls" is being performed on an American tour set prior to 1975. This song was not released until 1978, on the Jazz album, well after the release/recording of (the song) "Bohemian Rhapsody."

Quotes

• • [from trailer, Brian May finishes Bohemian Rhapsody guitar solo in studio]
  • Brian May: So now what?
  • Freddie Mercury: Oh, this is when the operatic section comes in.
  • Brian May: Ah. The operatic section, yeah...