Documentary on British filmmaker Sir David Lean in development

A documentary feature about the late British filmmaker Sir David Lean is in the works at Sky, with Barnaby Thompson attached as its director. Titled Epic – The Life and Times of David Lean, the documentary will give an account of the Oscar winning filmmaker's life and career with previously unreleased archive footage as well as the contributions of leading filmmakers, the BFI National Archive and the David Lean Foundation. Known for Oscar-winning films such as The Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia and the Academy Award-nominated film Doctor Zhivago, Lean created complex and layered narratives even as he struggled to find meaning and connection on a personal front.

A co-produced venture between Fragile Films and Embankment Films, Epic – The Life and Times of David Lean is scheduled for a 2025 release.

Speaking about the documentary, director Thompson said, "David Lean was a charismatic, but deeply complex man – a flawed human being but a genius behind the camera. At a moment when the future of the theatrical experience feels threatened, it is the perfect time to look at the life and work of the man that created ‘pure cinema’, the big screen epic, and so many of the greatest movies ever made."

Nick Taussig of Embankment Films added that it is the right time to take on a documentary on the filmmaker, with an “extraordinary body of cinematic work but also his own surprising and complex personal life story.”