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With over five decades of iconic popular music that includes several hit Broadway shows, one critically adored biographical feature film, and unforgettable duets with the likes of John Lennon, George Michael, Patti LaBelle, and Britney Spears just to name a few, it’s a testament to his genius that legendary musician Elton John is still standing and eager to make new music. “I still love playing the piano,” John tells Deadline. “I’m waiting to get back in the studio. I can’t wait to release new stuff. I’m raring to go.”
The new documentary Elton John: Never Too Late, directed by R.J. Cutler and John’s husband, David Furnish, takes a deep dive into the highs and lows of the singer-songwriter’s multi-faceted career. Through never-before-seen footage, diaries and audio interviews for his memoir Me and animated sequences that depict John’s memories, the film follows his tumultuous formative years, his meteoric rise to fame while struggling with and overcoming drug addiction, to performing his last shows in North America leading to his farewell concert at Dodgers stadium in Los Angeles.
A highlight from the documentary is a song called “Never Too Late,” which has made the 2025 Academy Award shortlist for Best Original Song, composed by John, his longtime friend and renowned singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile, Bernie Taupin — John’s collaborator of decades — and Andrew Watt.
Here, John talks to Deadline about the process of making the song with Carlile, Taupin, and Watt, his love of vocal duets and the importance of asking for help in the throes of addiction.
DEADLINE: It was great to see you on stage with Brandi Carlile Sunday night at the Golden Globes.
ELTON JOHN: The Golden Globes is always fun because you sit on the floor, and there’s a lot of people — it’s like people-watching. It’s not so serious as the Oscars. I thought it went very well [Sunday] night. I thought [Nikki Glaser] was brilliant; she did a great job.
DEADLINE: I wanted to ask you about the creation of “Never Too Late,” the original song for your documentary. It’s my understanding that Brandi began the process of writing it after seeing a rough cut of the film.
Brandi and Catherine [Shepherd], her wife, and her kids usually come down to our house in Nice for the summer. This was two summers ago and there was a rough cut of the film, which I had not seen. I didn’t want to see it at that point. I only want to see it when it’s finished. Brandi was so moved by it that she started to write this song. Originally, the documentary was going to be called Farewell Yellow Brick Road, which was the title of the final tour, which I thought was OK, but it was fairly boring. Then, when she came up with this song, we recorded it because it was about my journey of never giving up and [the concept of] it’s never too late to try something new. The song fit so well, and the title of the song fit the documentary so well we changed everything to call the documentary Never Too Late.
DEADLINE: Andrew Watt, of course, also helped, adding other genius touches that he’s known for…
JOHN: Bernie [Taupin] helping out as well. It was a cohesive effort on all of our parts. It was fun, it was great. Once I got the full lyrics, I wrote the song fairly quickly because if you write something that’s on the written page, that’s about you, it comes to life much quicker. It’s like me doing the Captain Fantastic album years ago. Every song was about me and Bernie, so it’s easier to write like that. So, I wrote the song fairly quickly, and we loved the song and we put it on the end of the documentary.
DEADLINE: Of course, it’s not only a composition but also beautifully performed by you and Brandi. You’re one of the greatest vocalists of all time, but she’s an incredible vocalist too.
JOHN: She is, for me, probably the best vocalist in America. I mean, she could sing anything. She had the guts to do Joni Mitchell’s Blue in front of her at Disney Hall. And having sung with her on The Lockdown Sessions and then doing this, I just want to do some more work with her because she’s just so inspiring. We’ve been friends for 20-something years, so it feels natural to do something with her.
DEADLINE: I think back on some of your famous duets that you’ve done. Kiki Dee leaps to mind immediately. That was your first number one song in the U.K. if I’m not mistaken?
JOHN: It was indeed. Yeah.
DEADLINE: In the film, we see the incredible story of your collaboration with John Lennon on “Whatever Gets You thru the Night.” Is it rewarding for you to do a duet or vocal collaboration with another artist?
JOHN: If they’re great artists, of course. I did an album of duets with people like Leonard Cohen, Don Henley, k.d. lang and other great singers. It’s always great to sing with a great. I did a duet with Ray Charles, the last thing he ever did before he died. I did a duet with Aretha Franklin and Mary J. Blige. So, when you get these chances to sing with a great singer, you don’t usually turn them down because you always learn something.
DEADLINE: On your Instagram, you said you felt Brandi had found a way to write to your voice, similar to your collaborations with Bernie Taupin over the years. Was there a way in which you felt, “Yes, this is very much a part of the body of my work” and not a left turn?
JOHN: Absolutely. Because otherwise, I wouldn’t have recorded it. It’s something that Bernie would’ve been proud of, and he’s been part of it because he added his bits here and there, and it got to me straight away. I think she’s a fantastic writer as well as a fantastic vocalist. And yeah, it moved me because there’s so much in it. “You’re an iron man, baby,” because I’ve been through so much. “To hell with Heaven’s gate” — yeah, I’m not ready for the dustbin yet or the trash can. And we’ve been friends for a long time, so she’s gotten to know me and I’ve gotten to know her. She knows me pretty damn well.
DEADLINE: The documentary has been out on Disney+ for a few weeks now, and I was fortunate to speak with both your husband, David Furnish, and R.J. Cutler at Toronto for the film premiere. What kind of reaction are you getting?
JOHN: I watched it in Toronto for the second time and I really enjoyed it. The first time I saw it was in L.A., and I relaxed in Toronto. I didn’t see much of it because my eyes are not what they were, but I really enjoyed it and what struck me most about it was I was really proud of the early music that we did in those first five years [of my career]. It sounded really, really great. I’m really happy with it. We’ve had an incredible reaction to it. I think people know me quite well now with Tantrums & Tiaras years ago, then Rocketman, and now this; there’s not much more left to tell. This is a documentary that tells the story of redemption from someone who gets lost in a sea of drugs and alcohol and doesn’t know which way to turn and asks for help. And then his whole life turns around. Hence the title Never Too Late. I’m very proud of it. And I think David, of course, he’s my husband, he knows me back to front and with R.J., who’s an expert documentarian, they did a wonderful job. I’m so happy with it.
DEADLINE: One thing that surprised me both in your memoir that you wrote recently and in this film is how you remember things in such extraordinary detail. Because you’ve talked so openly about drug usage, you would think that parts of your career would be a fog, but they aren’t.
JOHN: Yeah, no, they’re not. I remember every horrible grim detail and every great detail of my life, and that helped me get sober because I just was so fed up with what I was doing. I thought there must be a better way. I knew that for a long time before I got sober, but I couldn’t ask for help because I thought it was a sign of weakness, which is ridiculous. But a lot of people go through that. They can’t ask for help because they’re ashamed and dare not ask for help because they think, “I knew I had a problem, but I just thought I could solve it myself.” So, I had to say, “OK, I cannot do this. Help me.” And when I got help, it was a turning point in my life and it was the best thing I ever did. Those three words, “I need help,” changed my life.
DEADLINE: In the documentary, we see these horrible experiences you went through at a young age, which is so moving. But on the piano, you were always the master of entertaining people.
JOHN: Yep. I still love playing the piano. That’s going to happen and I’m waiting to get back in the studio. I can’t wait to release new stuff. So yeah, all is good. I’m raring to go.
DEADLINE: You’re so extraordinarily prolific; you’ve got Broadway shows and the West End. What are you up to next?
JOHN: [Working on getting my] eyesight a little better. I don’t know what we’re going to do next, but there’s plenty of stuff to think about. I love doing my radio shows. We have some irons in the fire that’s pretty lucky, and I can’t reveal them yet, but they will be revealed soon.
DEADLINE: You’ve been on the Oscar stage many times, and you’re shortlisted for this song. So, you’ll be prepared and willing to retake the stage at the Dolby?
JOHN: Listen, if you’re nominated for an Oscar, you don’t turn it down. And if we are nominated for one of the top five songs to be on the shortlist, it would be great. And it’ll be great to play the song. It’ll be the first time I’ve ever played it live, so it’ll be great.
[This interview has been edited for length and clarity]
