The six. Photo: Lacey Terrell/Prime Video
Well, here you are again, you say you want your TV show. Now who is Amazon to keep you down? Daisy Jones & the Six, an upcoming Prime Video series, follows a fictional 70’s dramatic rock band inspired in part by Fleetwood Mac. The show is based on a book of the same name written by Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. The novel was released in 2017 and was selected based on a copy read by the couple and executive producers Scott Neustadter and Lauren Levy Neustadter prior to its publication. Then production halted due to the pandemic, which explains the wait for Vanity Fair. The series was also released as an EP by Reese Witherspoon through her studio Hello Sunshine, with Scott Neustadter co-creating the show alongside Michael H. Weber and being a co-show runner alongside Will Graham.
The first teaser promises: “Her music made her famous. Their breakup made them legends.” Based on our first good look at the show, it adapts the book’s oral history format into a musical documentary version. “Look, I know I said I’d tell you everything,” says the titular Daisy. “But how much of everything do you really want to know?” Below is all the information I want to know.
The book, which faithfully adapts the series, follows the title of Daisy as she navigates the ’70s rock scene. She joins the fictional band The Six, led by Billy Dunne. Together with the rest of their bandmates and Billy’s friend Camila, the two navigate interpersonal conflicts, musical conflicts and substance abuse.
The story seems to follow more or less the same plot as the original book. Their goal was to “figure out how we could make the viewing experience the same as the reading experience,” the creators told Vanity Fair. That meant keeping mostly the same structure as the book while condensing the framework, which revolves around the band members looking back on their youth from the future, into 20 years.
Daisy Jones is played by Riley Keough, a descendant of a certain Elvis Presley. Billy Dunne is played by Finnick Odair’s Sam Claflin. Both Keough and Claflin told Vanity Fair they spent a lot of time learning music themselves to play these rockers. Keough learned to belten, while Claflin both learned how to play rhythm guitar and that “Come Together” isn’t by Michael Jackson. Other cast members include Suki Waterhouse as Karen, Sebastian Chacon as Warren, Josh Whitehouse as Eddie, and Will Harrison as Graham. Camila Morrone will play the fictional Camila, while Timothy Olyphant will play Rod Reyes, Tom Wright Teddy Price and Nabiyah Be Simone Jackson.
Sure it sounds like it, huh! But no, this isn’t the Fleetwood Mac bioseries you’ve been longing for. It’s definitely inspired by that iconic band (and their iconic album Rumors) as well as the general rock scene of the era, but Daisy Jones and the Six are their own thing. If you want to see Fleetwood Mac talk about their whole situation, stay tuned to their episode “Behind the Music.”
Blake Mills and Tony Berg wrote much of the original music for the fictional band, which includes songs mentioned in the book such as “Regret Me” and “Aurora.” “It sounds kind of fresh and not acting,” Neustadter told Vanity Fair. These songs will also contain lyrics written in the book. The soundtrack will be released on Atlantic Records. If you’re in the mood for a sample, listen to the real fake band’s first real single, their fake iconic track Regret Me.
When you’re ready to rock out with your six, you’ll need to queue. The series will premiere on Prime Video on March 3, with new episodes appearing weekly every Friday. Sex, Drugs and Streaming Services.
#DaisyJonesAndTheSix takes the stage on March 3, 2023. pic.twitter.com/xVItBb7SJ2
– Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) December 6, 2022