Fans of Billy Joel should all be in mood for two long nights with the piano in July.
HBO set the first dates for its original documentary in two parts Billy Joel: And that’s okay. The first part will be broadcast on Friday July 18, followed by the second part a week later on Friday July 25. Each party will make its debut on HBO, and the HBO Max streaming service, at 8 p.m. and / PT and will take place for about two and a half hours, with the complete exploration of the emblematic musician who is blocking almost five hours.
Billy Joel: And that’s okayDirected and produced by Susan Lacy and Jessica Levin, created his first part at the Tribeca 2025 festival, but Joel himself could not attend the screening of the opening evening, announcing just the week before the event where he had been diagnosed with a brain disorder at the normal pressure of Hydrocephalus (NPH), which led him to cancel his future concerts.
However, the directors and producers of the film indicated that there was no reason to be too worried about the beloved interpreter.
“He will be fine,” said Lacy The Hollywood Reporter Before the first of Doc’s Tribeca Festival. “He just needs to recover. He needs to do physiotherapy, which he does – the doctors told him yesterday that he will be fine.”
Lacy and Levin added: “He will come back”, sharing a message from the interpreter in their opening remarks before the projection in which he shed light on his state, showing that his sense of humor is always intact.
“Make the Vieur, but it is always better to be cremated,” said Joel via a Lu Lacy’s message on stage.
Longtime lighting director of Joel and And it’s okay Executive producer Steve Cohen shared that he had spoken to Joel on the day of the first.
“He is fine. He works on his healing and his recovery,” said Cohen THR Before the first on Wednesday evening. “He is brilliant; He is happy; He is delighted for us. He called me and said to me, “I’m so proud of the work you have done. I did not expect the day, he is my best friend and I do not give shit on anything, except that he is healthy and enjoying this part of his life.
The film offers an expansive look at Joel’s life and work, with exclusive and in -depth interviews with the artist as well as access to performance never seen, home films and personal photos.
In addition to the interviews with Joel, the Doc includes interviews with a friend and former collaborator Jon Small, the former wives Elizabeth Weber (who was also the director of Joel), Christie Brinkley and Katie Lee, her daughter Alexa Ray Joel, his wife Alexis Roderick Joel, the members of his group and his other musicians, notably Bruce Springsteen, John Mellenamp, NAS, Pink, Gart Brooks and Paul McCarney.
Billy Joel: And that’s okay Is producer of Emma Pills and Executive produced by Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman through their play banner as well as Sean Hayes and Todd Milliner through their Hazy Mills banner. Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller and Sara Rodriguez Executive products for HBO.
Here is the official HBO synopsis: “Billy Joel: And that’s okay is a vast portrait of Billy Joel, the renowned temple of Rock & Roll, winner of a Grammy Rock & Roll of Long Island, New York. With unprecedented access to performances, home films and personal photographs, as well as individual intimate interviews, the documentary explores the life and work of the singer-songwriter whose music has not only endured but has soaked through the generations. The two -part film is drawn up around exclusive and exclusive interviews with Joel, illuminating the key moments that forged his character and the events and the Muses that inspired his music for more than six decades. Exploring the new revealing territory and enriched by video clips and dynamic performance of Joel’s musical work, many never seen before, the documentary gives a window on its process and recounts its monumental successes, while plunging into the hidden complexities of its life. From his childhood to Long Island, shaped by the absence of his father, to his first groups, the women he loved and the colleagues and collaborators who supported and betrayed him, the decades of composer of Joel reflect his rich and complicated. Sharing original stories on such successes like “Just The Way You Are”, an ode to his first love, and “Uptown Girl”, famous on the second wife Christie Brinkley, the film points to the narrow symbiosis between her life and art, revealing the music that has transformed his career, carved his heritage and her life. »»
More detailed descriptions of each room, supplied by HBO, follow.
The first part: “Joel admits to being a work in progress as he heads for his eighth decade and returns to a childhood as the son of parents of the working class at Long Island, the loss he felt at the age of eight when his father left the house, and his entry into the music sector. He went to error in keyboard groups in local bands to get rid of music. Love affair and first marriage to Elizabeth Weber who became the fuel of her first composition successes, like “Just The Way You Are” and “She’s Always a Woman”. His collaborators and peers carefully illuminate his musical gifts, and Joel plunges into the trade agreement he made which led to the writing of “Piano Man”. After having signed with Columbia Records, Joel’s career took off and years of tubes and record tours followed, while he continued to channel his personal experiences in his music.
Second part: “With his eighth studio album Nylon curtainJoel changed his musical concentration by reflecting the grain and aspirations of The Everyman with songs such as “Alntown” and “Goodnight Saigon”. Joel recounts his complicated meeting with his long absent father and discovers the secret story of the way in which his Jewish grandparents have survived Nazi Germany that he distilled in his philosophical ballad “Vienne”. Returning years on the road, Joel Vacations in St. Barths where he meets his future wife, the model Christie Brinkley, who would become the mother of her first child and the inspiration behind the tube “Uptown Girl”. Dedicated to his profession, but uncomfortable with glory and the spotlight, Joel persevered through romantic and professional setbacks, choosing to reinvent himself and many times. With the support of the wife Alexis Roderick Joel and their children, and thanks to his collaboration with Elton John, a return to his classic roots and his historic residence at the Madison Square Garden, he continues to find a safe space in his music. »»
