A new documentary chronicling the turbulent life of late IRON MAIDEN singer Paul Di'Anno is complete — and director Wes Orshoski says the band itself ultimately came on board to help.
Titled "Di'Anno: Iron Maiden's Lost Singer," the film tells the remarkable story of how two IRON MAIDEN fans crossed paths with Di'Anno at the lowest point of his life and helped nurse him back to health and relaunch his career. It features appearances from a who's-who of metal, including METALLICA's James Hetfield, KISS's Gene Simmons, IRON MAIDEN's own Steve Harris, and members of EXODUS, SLAYER, MEGADETH, OVERKILL and SEPULTURA.
Getting IRON MAIDEN's blessing wasn't a given. Orshoski revealed that manager Rod Smallwood declined to participate back in 2017, but the band eventually warmed to the project — licensing music and video elements and providing footage of their October 22, 2024 onstage tribute to Di'Anno at Saint Paul's Xcel Energy Center. "MAIDEN, in the end, were super cool and allowed me to" use the footage in the film, the director said.
Di'Anno was IRON MAIDEN's original vocalist, fronting the band from 1978 to 1981 and singing on their 1980 self-titled debut and 1981's "Killers" before being replaced by Bruce Dickinson. Despite a turbulent career and years of health struggles, he remained a beloved figure among metal fans.
Di'Anno died on October 21, 2024 at his home in Salisbury, England, at the age of 66; the cause was a tear in the sac surrounding his heart that led to internal bleeding. He was buried on November 21, 2024 at the City of London Cemetery. With "Iron Maiden's Lost Singer," Orshoski aims to give the singer the kind of definitive sendoff his story deserves — one that, in the end, even his old band helped make possible.