'Billy and Me' Director Fires Back At Billy Joel's Camp Over Biopic Diss

The director of the upcoming Billy Joel biopic is pushing back on the "Piano Man's" camp after a rep blasted the movie ... John Ottman says the only thing that's misguided here is Billy's outlook on what the flick is all about.

John, who won an Oscar for his work on the Queen biopic "Bohemian Rhapsody," tells TMZ ... "Billy and Me" does not need to use any of Billy's original music because it takes place during his formative years when he was performing cover songs with his band, The Hassles, and "struggling to find his artistic identity."

A rep for Billy blasted the unauthorized biopic in the media, telling Variety ... "Since 2021, the parties involved have been officially notified that they do not possess Billy Joel’s life rights and will not be able to secure the music rights required for this project. Billy Joel has not authorized or supported this project in any capacity, and any attempt to move forward without it would be both legally and professionally misguided."

John's cool with all that ... telling us the movie is told from the perspective of Irwin Mazur, Billy's first manager who discovered him way back in 1966.

What's more, John says Billy's "lifelong best friend" and original drummer from The Hassles, Jon Small, is "actively involved" in the production and "personally consulted on the screenplay as someone who lived through and experienced the events portrayed."

John says Irwin and Jon signed the rights to their life stories over to the movie ... and while Billy hasn't done the same, John tells us ... "We have tremendous respect for Billy Joel and his legacy, and have worked hard to tell an honest, heartfelt story surrounding the young artist before the world knew his name."

Producer Adam Ripp added, “Billy & Me” tells that story from Irwin’s perspective and is based on his firsthand experiences and his legitimate right to tell his own life story. The real question is: why shouldn’t the one man who believed in Billy Joel before anyone else did have the right to share his own personal journey and firsthand experiences?"