After first coming to light back in January 21, the Danny Boyle-directed Sex Pistols drama Pistol has finally arrived on Hulu/Disney+.
The six-part series is based around Sex Pistols’ guitarist Steve Jones’ acclaimed 2018 memoir Lonely Boy and charts the rise and fall of the punk icons. Pistol stars Toby Wallace as Steve Jones, Anson Boon as vocalist John Lydon, Louis Partridge as bassist Sid Vicious, and Jacob Slater as drummer Paul Cook.
Pistol also features Christian Lees as Glen Matlock, Dylan Llewellyn as Wally Nightingale, Sydney Chandler as Chrissie Hynde, Emma Appleton as Nancy Spungen, and Maisie Williams as Jordan Mooney. It was adapted for the small screen by writer Craig Pearce and executive producers including Jones, Tracey Seaward, Anita Camarata and Gail Lyon.
How to watch Pistol
Pistol makes its premiere today (May 31) in the US on Hulu and on Disney+ in the UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore. Details for other territories will be announced at a later date.
If you’ve still to sign up, Disney+ costs $7.99/£7.99 per month, or $79.90/£79.90 for an annual sub. It's also the home of Beatles documentary Get Back, Pam & Tommy, the complete Star Wars franchise, all your Disney and Pixar favourites, all the Marvel Originals and movies, The Simpsons and more.
Hulu, meanwhile, costs $6.99 per month and is home to a wide range of films, TV shows, comedies, dramas, kids programmes and its list of Originals.
Pistol had its global red carpet premiere at the Odeon Luxe at London’s Leicester Square on Monday, May 23, which was attended by the series’ stars, including Anson Boon, who spoke with On Demand Entertainment about performing live for the series.
He said: “Danny’s aim when we started was always to make it feel like when you’re watching the show like you’re were watching a live performance – because the Sex Pistols were perfectly imperfect, that was part of their genius. You get those lumps and bumps when you watch it, and that’s what Danny’s aim always was.
“For me, that’s the most special part of the show – everything you see gig-wise, we played it live. There’s no pre-recording, no post-editing – it’s us singing, it’s us playing the instruments."
Explaining his approach to filming, Boyle previously told the New York Times: “I tried to make the series in a way that was chaotic and true to the Pistols’ manifesto. That meant taking an experimental approach to filming.
“We would just run whole scenes, whole performances, without knowing if we had captured the ‘right’ shot or not. It’s everything you’ve been taught not to do.”
In 2021, John Lydon caused a still when he called Pistol “disrespectful shit”.
