Several years after Donald Trump called Kim Jong Un “Little Rocket Man,” Elton John has weighed in on his hit song being the inspiration for the North Korean dictator’s nickname.
“I laughed, I thought that was brilliant,” John told Variety‘s Ramin Setoodeh in an interview at Toronto Film Festival. “I just thought, ‘Good on you, Donald.’ … Donald’s always been a fan of mine, and he’s been to my concerts many, many times. So, I mean, I’ve always been friendly toward him, and I thank him for his support. When he did that, I just thought it was hilarious. It made me laugh.”
As revealed in Mike Pompeo’s 2022 memoir, “Never Give an Inch,” Trump apparently had to explain to Kim Jong Un what the nickname meant, as the Supreme Leader was not familiar with the “Tiny Dancer” singer. Trump then reportedly autographed an Elton John CD as a gift to Kim.
“Of course he hasn’t heard of me, Kim Jong Un. I’d be very surprised if he had,” John said with a laugh. “I’ve never toured North Korea, and I have no intention of doing so. But, I thought it was a light moment, and it was fun.”
After the Friday night world premiere of the Disney+ documentary “Elton John: Never Too Late,” the music legend appeared to take a subtle dig at Trump. “Kindness will always win out… that’s what I hope for the American election in November,” said John, who in 2022 was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Joe Biden.
He went deeper on the election Saturday afternoon while stopping by Variety’s Toronto Film Festival Studio, sponsored by J.Crew and SharkNinja.
“I don’t go on stage and say to people, ‘You must vote for the Republicans, you must vote for the Democrats.’ It’s none of my business how they vote. They come to see me, and I’m so grateful they have,” John said. “What I want by saying that last night … there is a danger, as Dick Cheney said the other day. America is in a very volatile position. And it’s a country I love, and I’ve always loved, and I’m so thankful that it made me who I am.”
He continued, “I just want people to vote for things that are just, things that are important to people: the right to choose, the right to be who you are, and not let anybody else tell you who to be. And that goes all the way up to the Supreme Court.”
While John did not explicitly endorse either Kamala Harris or Trump, he asked rhetorically, “I just hope that people make the right decision to see what the future is going to be. Is it going to be fire and brimstone … or are we going to have a much calmer, a much safer place? People can vote for who they like, but as far as I’m concerned, I love love. And I’m a loving person, and I want that to come back to America. I feel it’s been lost in the last 12 years.”
John was met with a warm welcome after the Friday night world premiere of “Elton John: Never Too Late,” which looks back on his career and the highs and lows of his personal life. The “Rocket Man” singer teared up during the Q&A section of the night. “On my tombstone, I don’t want it to say he sold a million records. I want it to say he was a great dad and great husband,” he said.
The documentary, directed by R.J. Cutler and John’s husband David Furnish, follows John’s journey to becoming one of the world’s biggest rock stars in music history. It’s bookended by his landmark performances at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles in 1975 to more than 100,000 fans and again in 2022 as the final North American stop on his “Farewell Yellow Brick Road” tour.
“The idea of juxtaposing Dodgers in ’75 versus Dodgers in 2022 and the changes and differences in Elton’s life — that seemed like a really fulfilling narrative arc that we could we could explore and play around with,” Furnish said.
Cutler spoke highly about his collaboration with Furnish, who, as John’s husband, “felt [the story] in his heart and in a way that no one else could.”
“As a filmmaker, to have as your collaborator somebody who is feeding back to you on that level, it was a very rich process of communication,” Cutler said.
“Elton John: Never Too Late” will have a limited U.S. theatrical run in November and will stream on Disney+ on Dec. 13.
Source Agencies
