Elton John duets with Rocketman star Taron Egerton
Rocketman star Taron Egerton duets with Sir Elton John
Taron Egerton, who plays Sir Elton John in upcoming film Rocketman, has shown off his musical talents in a duet with the man himself.
The duo teamed up for a performance at the annual Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Awards viewing party on Sunday night (February 24), performing a cover of classic track “Tiny Dancer.”
Sir Elton John’s Rocketman duet draws Bohemian RHAPSODY comparisons
The performance from the two Eltons drew instant comparisons to the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, which took home four Oscars despite significant amounts of controversy.
Rami Malek, who won the Academy Award for Best Actor, does not sing live in Bohemian Rhapsody, which instead uses a blend of Freddie Mercury’s original voice and vocals from Canadian singer Marc Martel.
By contrast, Egerton showed off his impressive range, keeping up with Sir Elton himself as the pair performed the “Tiny Dancer” duet.
Rocketman star Taron Egerton duets with Sir Elton John
Ahead of the number, the Rocketman actor joked: “It’s funny how life turns out, isn’t it?”
The semi-fictionalised musical based on the rise of Elton John, set for release in May, will be eligible for the 2020 Academy Awards.
Rocketman will ‘celebrate’ Elton John’s sexuality
While Bohemian Rhapsody received significant flack for its “superficial” approach to Freddie Mercury’s sexuality and HIV/AIDS, Rocketman appears more at-ease with delving into Sir Elton’s personal life
Speaking to MTV last year, Egerton said: “I actually think the gay community will be quite surprised by quite how gay it feels.
“I’ve loved every second of it. I’m not someone who is remotely perturbed by male intimacy. I’m quite proud of what we’ve done in it.
“The movie we’ve shot is absolutely a celebration of everything that Elton John is, and part of that is his sexuality.”
Egerton teased: “I filmed my first sex scene for this film… really threw myself into it!”
Trailers indicate that the film will not swerve away from the subject matter, with former Game of Thrones star Richard Madden set to play Elton John’s ex-boyfriend John Reid.
Sir Elton John and husband David Furnish are both producers on the project.
Furnish explained to Press Association: “In typical Elton fashion he said ‘I don’t want a straightforward biopic, my life has been too crazy to just tell it in a very linear, unimaginative way’.
“So it’s a musical fantasy with the film going in and out of fantasy sequences with the catalogue reimagined and repurposed to draw out key emotional moments and key achievements and key developments in his life.”
