“It was Bono’s idea to reach out to Dave,” says Morgan Neville, who directed the Disney+ documentary “Bono and The Edge: A Sort of Homecoming with Dave Letterman.” U2‘s dynamic frontmen invite the talk show host to Dublin for a live performance of their greatest songs in this part-movie, part-travel adventure that details one of the most remarkable friendships and creative partnerships in the history of rock and roll. Watch our exclusive video interview with the Oscar-winning director above.
Neville explains that Bono liked the humor of “Dave’s ironic take.” He adds, “They’re also very aware that they can be a little sincere, so adding some irony to it is really helpful. I feel like U2’s whole story is going from sincerity to irony, and Dave’s whole story is going from irony to sincerity. Dave’s a much more heartfelt, sincere guy now than when he started. It was this odd invite, but nobody knew what it was going to be. We weren’t even sure it was going to be in Ireland. I talked to Dave and when he said he had never been to Ireland I said, ‘That has to be it.'”
“I saw U2 on the ‘War’ tour at the LA Sports Arena when I was 15,” Neville reveals. “I’ve been a fan of theirs since I was a young teenager, which is sort of the exact same time I became a fan of Letterman’s too. It’s interesting that they’re both people I’ve tracked my whole life. I’ve seen U2 many times on many different tours and have always kind of paid attention to what they were doing. In a way it was kind of a project I had been prepping for for 40 years. It’s pretty great when that happens.”
The director explains, “The relationship between the band and Ireland is so interesting. That’s the part that we really got to dig into. It functions on a couple different levels. One is, every Irish rockstar who had ever made it before them had left Ireland to do it. They not only made it while in Ireland, but after they made it they didn’t leave Ireland. The relationship with the Irish is that kind of classic brother situation where, ‘I’ll take the piss out of you all day long, but if somebody else criticizes you, I’ll take them down.’ It keeps them humble. They’re not gods in Ireland. They’re loved, but people take the piss out of them all the time, as you say in Ireland.”
Neville won an Oscar in 2014 for “20 Feet From Stardom.” Other documentaries he is known for include “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” (2018), “The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble” (2015) and “Best of Enemies: Buckley vs. Vidal” (2015).
PREDICT the 2023 Emmy nominees through July 12
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