Pharrell Williams’ ‘Golden’ Film Shut Down Before Release

The decision to shut down 'Golden' in post-production was reportedly unanimous from both producers and directors.

Golden, a long-anticipated film about Pharrell Williams’ childhood with a star-studded cast, has been nixed and will not be released. According to an exclusive Variety report on Feb. 7, Universal Pictures shut down the project at the last minute.

Directed by Michel Gondry, “Golden” had a theatrical release date of May 5 through Universal. The film is one in a series of releases as part of its creative partnership with Williams, so the studio both financed and oversaw the effort to bring “Golden” to the big screen.

As several sources reported, however, the film project was shut down after Universal Pictures and producers unanimously agreed with Gondry that the film did not seem to meet internal expectations.

Williams said of the decision, “When all of us got into the editing room we collectively decided there wasn’t a path forward to tell the version of this story that we originally envisioned.”

Williams and Gondry told Variety, “We appreciate all the hard work of the talented cast and crew. While we’re disappointed we can’t deliver this film, we have incredible partners at Universal and will collaborate in a different capacity again soon.”

“Golden” had a stacked cast collaborating on the movie, including Pharrell Williams as the headliner, “Kelvin Harrison Jr., Halle Bailey, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Brian Tyree Henry, Janelle Monáe, Missy Elliott, Quinta Brunson, and Anderson. Paak and Jaboukie Young-White.”

Universal will absorb the losses incurred by backing out of the movie. Apparently, around $20 million had already been put toward production costs since “Golden” was already in early post-production. Despite the unusual circumstances, all cast and crew involved have already been paid for their work.

This is not the first time Universal has worked with Williams. Last year, it released a documentary about William’s life in Lego style titled “Piece by Piece.”

In November, Williams spoke about the differences between “Piece by Piece” and the now-nixed “Golden.”
Williams said, “’Piece By Piece’ is about my life, whereas Golden is about a neighborhood that I grew up in. It’s a musical expedition set in the summer of 1977 in Virginia Beach.”

“It’s a coming-of-age story about self-discovery and pursuing your dreams, but it’s so much more magical than that. It’s a celebration of Black life, Black culture, and most importantly, Black joy,” he described at the time.