10 Films Inspired by Iconic Albums

Despite facing criticism for his role in HBO’s satirical series The Idol, The Weeknd, also known as Abel Tesfaye, is determined to make his mark in film. His upcoming project, Hurry Up Tomorrow, will debut as a studio album before its movie adaptation, a gripping thriller featuring Barry Keoghan and Jenna Ortega, hits theaters in May.

Hurry Up Tomorrow isn’t the first album to inspire a full-length film. From Prince’s legendary Purple Rain and Tenacious D’s The Pick of Destiny to Jennifer Lopez’s This Is Me... Now: A Love Story and Halsey’s If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, music has long been a source of cinematic inspiration. Artists like Lana Del Rey, Kanye West, and Bon Iver have also paired their music with short films.

However, some films owe their existence entirely to the enduring popularity of their source albums. From avant-garde pop masterpieces and dark thrillers to wild west adventures and holiday love stories, here are 10 movies that emerged years after their original albums became classics.

Tommy (1975)

Teaming up with visionary director Ken Russell, The Who brought their 1969 album Tommy to life in a wildly extravagant film. Ann-Margret, who played Tommy’s mother, delivered an Oscar-nominated performance that included a surreal scene where she was drenched in a bizarre mix of chocolate, foam detergent, and baked beans.

The rock opera boasted an all-star cast, including Oliver Reed, Jack Nicholson, Tina Turner, and Elton John, who famously wore oversized Doc Martens (actually stilts). However, it was Roger Daltrey, The Who’s lead singer, who truly shined as Tommy, a boy who overcomes his disabilities to become a pinball champion and a spiritual leader.

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978)

After the massive success of the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees collaborated with producer Robert Stigwood to reinterpret The Beatles’ 1967 masterpiece Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band into a film. In an interview with Playboy, Gibb confidently stated, “Kids today don’t know the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper. When they see our film and hear our version, that’s what they’ll remember. The Beatles will become secondary.” However, history proved otherwise, as the Beatles’ original work remained iconic.

Featuring Peter Frampton as a musician striving to honor his grandfather Sgt. Pepper’s legacy, the rock opera was a critical and commercial failure, even alienating its own cast and the Beatles themselves. Alice Cooper, one of many rock stars with cameos, called the film “blasphemous” toward the Fab Four. George Harrison, who skipped the premiere, bluntly remarked that the film’s creators had “harmed their reputations and careers unnecessarily.”

Quadrophenia (1979)

After their over-the-top first film adaptation, The Who opted for a more grounded approach with their second. Franc Roddam’s gritty take on the 1973 album Quadrophenia delves into the British mod subculture, devoid of any on-screen musical performances.

The band stayed off-camera, with Phil Daniels leading as a rebellious teenager seeking escape through scooters, violence, and amphetamines. Released during the mod revival of the late ’70s, Quadrophenia also became a key influence on the Britpop movement of the ’90s.

The Wall (1982)

Roger Ebert once referred to The Wall as “one of the most terrifying musicals ever made.” This dark fusion of live-action and surreal animation, based on Pink Floyd’s chart-topping album, which dominated the Billboard 200 for 15 weeks, is a relentlessly grim exploration of societal alienation.

While Roger Waters of Pink Floyd penned the screenplay, the lead role went to Bob Geldof, frontman of the Boomtown Rats, who portrayed a tormented rock star succumbing to societal pressures. Directed by Alan Parker (The Commitments, Evita), the film’s production was fraught with challenges—Parker later called it “one of the most grueling experiences of his career.” Despite this, the movie won two BAFTAs and has since become a cult favorite.

Red Headed Stranger (1986)

Willie Nelson was so committed to turning his 1975 album Red Headed Stranger into a film that he personally funded the project, even using his Austin ranch as the primary filming location. Whether this was a wise financial decision remains debatable.

The movie follows Nelson as an early-20th-century preacher who becomes a fugitive after killing his wife and her lover. Despite its limited release and mixed reviews, Nelson, who collaborated with director William D. Witliff on Honeysuckle Rose and Barbarosa, remains proud of the film. In 2019, he attended a special screening at “Willieville,” the ranch where the movie was shot.

Imaginaerum (2012)

Tuomas Holopainen, founder of Nightwish, described the band’s first film as a celebration of life and the world’s beauty. Despite its uplifting message, Imaginaerum follows a musician with dementia who enters a coma and revisits his childhood in a fantastical realm. While the film may confuse those unfamiliar with the 2011 album, director Stobe Harju creates a visually stunning gothic universe inspired by David Lynch, Tim Burton, and Salvador Dalí.

God Help the Girl (2014)

Belle and Sebastian’s music has always had a film-like quality, making it no surprise that frontman Stuart Murdoch transitioned from crafting whimsical indie-pop to creating whimsical dramas. Naturally, he drew from his own work to bring his vision to life.

Written and directed by Murdoch, God Help the Girl is based on his solo album of the same name, released five years prior, featuring collaborations with The Divine Comedy, Smoosh, and Those Dancing Days. The film follows an anorexic teenager who escapes a psychiatric hospital to pursue her musical aspirations. Emily Browning, known for American Gods, portrayed the troubled protagonist. While the movie earned a special jury award at Sundance, it left many critics unimpressed—The Hollywood Reporter described it as “an indie musical that feels like one long B-side.”

Black Antenna (2018)

Director Adam Mason took a unique approach to adapting Alice in Chains’ 2017 album Rainier Fog into a sci-fi film. Black Antenna, which follows an alien father and daughter navigating the West Coast to contact their home planet, was first released as 10 individual episodes (one for each album track) before being compiled into a 90-minute feature.

Mason explained that the album’s themes of hiding behind masks and uncertainty heavily influenced the project. The film also drew inspiration from Blade Runner, Starman, and Pinocchio. “The album reflects a lot of what’s happening in the world, and that naturally seeped into our movie,” he added.

Christmas in Tahoe (2021)

Train’s Pat Monahan is no stranger to holiday cheer. Six years after the band’s eighth album Christmas in Tahoe, he teamed up with the Hallmark Channel for a film adaptation of the same name. Monahan not only executive produced the movie but also starred in it.

In the film, Monahan portrays Jackson, the best friend of Laura Osnes’s character, who returns to her hometown to rediscover the magic of the holidays. Alongside Kyle Selig, who plays a fictional rock star named Ryan, Monahan performs Train classics like “Shake Up Christmas” to save a beloved Christmas event. “Maybe now I’ll be in a Hallmark movie every year,” Monahan told People before the premiere. However, Christmas in Tahoe remains his only foray into Hallmark films.

Deliver Me From Nowhere (2025)

While documentaries about album-making are common—think Metallica’s Some Kind of Monster, Nick Cave’s One More Time with Feeling, and Neil Young’s Harvest Time—Deliver Me From Nowhere stands out as a rare fictionalized take on the process. Based on Warren Zanes’s book about the creation of Bruce Springsteen’s 1982 album Nebraska, the film delves into the artistic journey behind the iconic record.

Unlike the massive success of Born in the USA, Bruce Springsteen famously crafted Nebraska using a simple four-track cassette recorder in his New Jersey home. Jeremy Allen White, known for The Bear, will star as Springsteen in Scott Cooper’s tribute to the making of this DIY masterpiece. Interestingly, the album wasn’t originally meant for release—Springsteen attempted to re-record the tracks with the E Street Band but later admitted to Warren Zanes that the studio versions only “made the whole thing worse.”