Sir Elton John is not, he would like to make it clear, planning on performing for Prince William’s wedding to Kate Middelton. “I don’t know Kate and William,” he says. “I’d made a joke that I’d probably be busking outside. No, it’ll probably be someone like Barry Manilow — someone younger and more attractive.”
Besides, he’s got enough on his plate with the recent arrival of his and husband David Furnish’s first son, Zachary, and the release of “Gnomeo & Juliet,” the film on which he serves as executive producer and for which he provided the soundtrack. John admits that, while he loves kids, being a parent is still a new role for him.
“I never thought one day that I’d actually be a father, but I’m very pleased I changed my mind,” he says. “As long as David and I bring him up to be a loving and compassionate boy, then I’ll be very happy.”
That’s quite different from the lawn ornaments in his film. The star-crossed gnomes of the title belong to neighboring — and warring — red and blue camps, but John insists audiences shouldn’t read too much political allegory into it, despite how the red state/blue state battles may have heated up recently.
“We started the film 11 years ago, and if we’d had the foresight to do that, I’d say we’re f—ing geniuses,” he says. “But I do feel there is a message in this film: We spend so much time hating each other because our parents tell us that’s what we have to do.”
