A legendary rock band has plans for two big projects in 2026, plus fans might get to soon hear new music.<\/p>\n
Lynyrd Skynyrd<\/a> manager Ross Schilling says that the band is working on its first \u201cofficial autobiography\u201d and is in talks to make a movie about the band\u2019s story. The biopic would likely chronicle the Southern rockers\u2019 early years; the tragic plane crash that killed original lead singer Ronnie Van Zant and two other touring band members in 1977; and the group\u2019s continued legacy led by Ronnie\u2019s brother, current vocalist Johnny Van Zant.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have two or three big players interested in doing the official movie for the band,\u201d Schilling told Ultimate Classic Rock<\/a>. \u201cWe think, obviously, the story is tremendous. There\u2019s probably not a better story out there in music, certainly in rock \u2018n\u2019 roll. We don\u2019t know if it will be a two-hour motion picture film or go to Netflix or somebody and do a six- or eight-episode series.\u201d<\/p>\n There\u2019s no word on a potential cast, director or when fans might get to see a screen adaptation of Skynyrd\u2019s story. Several biographies have been written about the \u201cSweet Home Alabama\u201d group, but \u201cnone by the people that were closest to it and lived it,\u201d Schilling said.<\/p>\n Schilling has been Lynyrd Skynyrd\u2019s band manager since 1999 and recently left Vector Management to form his own company, King Duke Entertainment. According to UCR, he\u2019ll continue managing the group, its current frontman (Johnny), and the estates of the original band members, the last of whom (Gary Rossington<\/a>) died in 2023.<\/p>\n Skynyrd\u2019s 2026 plans also include a joint tour<\/a> with Foreigner<\/a>, featuring an Aug. 23 concert at the Broadview Stage at SPAC (Saratoga Performing Arts Center) in Saratoga Springs. The iconic song \u201cFree Bird\u201d will also be featured in a Super Bowl commercial next month, Schilling said, and new music could be on the way. <\/p>\n Lynyrd Skynyrd released its last album, \u201cLast of a Dyin\u2019 Breed,\u201d in 2012. Only one other song has been released since, back in 2020: \u201cLast of the Street Survivors,\u201d written by Van Zant, longtime guitarist Rickey Medlocke and Rossington.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s 30 songs that Johnny, Rickey and Gary wrote that are kind of sitting there that could be revisited and recorded at some point,\u201d Schilling told UCR. \u201cWill they come out as Skynyrd music? I don\u2019t know. That has yet to be determined. If Rickey and Johnny want to (finish) them, maybe that\u2019ll happen, but right now there isn\u2019t a big plan to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNone of us feel the story ended in 1977; it came back and it kept going, stronger, and still is,\u201d Schilling added.<\/p>\n The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group formed in the 1960s and released its first album, \u201c(Pronounced \u2018L\u0115h-\u2019n\u00e9rd \u2018Skin-\u2019n\u00e9rd),\u201d in 1973. The band\u2019s hits include \u201cSweet Home Alabama,\u201d \u201cFree Bird,\u201d \u201cGimme Three Steps,\u201d \u201cFree Bird\u201d and \u201cTuesday\u2019s Gone.\u201d<\/p>\n