Bon Jovi is finally telling their story in the new Hulu docuseries 'Thank You, Goodnight.' Band members Jon Bon Jovi and Tico Torres, as well as director Gotham Chopra, spoke to THR's Tiffany Taylor all about the project. Jon Bon Jovi and Torres revealed what it was like reliving their 40-year career while watching the docuseries, as well as the "magic" of good songwriting that has made acts like their band and Taylor Swift massively successfully. Plus, Chopra revealed what Jon Bon Jovi has in common with sports legend Tom Brady, who he also made a documentary about, and shared how he convinced Richie Sambora to be featured in the docuseries after the guitarist left Bon Jovi in 2013. 'Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story' hits Hulu on Friday, April 26.
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00:00I know what songs like Livin' on a Prayer or It's My Life have meant to people over the years.
00:05I know what so many of those songs have meant to people.
00:11And I get it because I know what songs mean to me."
00:14Bon Jovi is finally telling their story in the new Hulu docuseries Thank U, Good Night.
00:19Band members Jon Bon Jovi and Tico Torres, as well as director Gautam Chopra,
00:24spoke to The Hollywood Reporter all about the project.
00:27The series, timed to the 40th anniversary of the band releasing their first album,
00:31juxtaposes Jon Bon Jovi working through a vocal injury over the past few years,
00:35with footage chronicling the band's rise to fame.
00:38What really stood out to me is how I felt like you're essentially the same guy. You still have
00:42that drive, that determination that's never really left you. What was your takeaway from watching that?
00:48I was certainly single-mindedly focused, and I think a lot of that had to do with
00:54passion and desire, sure. But a lot of it had to do with being so young.
00:58So, you know, that kind of focus was not unusual. I guess what differentiated me is I wasn't ever the
01:07best singer, the best guitar player, the best songwriter. But I tell you what I was the best at,
01:13hard work. You know, I was not afraid of working eight days a week to make it work.
01:20Tico, when you watched the docuseries for the first time, how did it make you feel?
01:24Old.
01:28It's, you know, again, see yourself grow up on camera, and Jon hit it on the head. I mean,
01:33his drive, all our drives as individuals, that there's effervescence. It's like that
01:38club soda's got lots of bubbles, you know, and that was us at the time.
01:43One thing you can't be in this world is a quitter. So there's no way we're going to slow down.
01:49Chopra, who's also directed documentaries on sports stars like Kobe Bryant and Tom Brady,
01:54weighed in on how Jon Bon Jovi and the band have stayed true to their roots while achieving
01:58four decades of success. He loves to wear that shirt on tour,
02:02New Jersey versus everybody. You know, it's like, that's like him. He's like, New Jersey strong.
02:07And yeah, he's gone on. He's at homes in Palm Beach and East Hampton and all this, you know,
02:14but he's still this sort of blue collar kid from New Jersey. I think that's the chip he
02:19carries on his shoulder. And again, this is very similar. I'm, you know, super close to Tom.
02:24Tom, in his mind, was always the 199th pick, the sixth round guy who every team passed on.
02:30I do think that sense of, you know, work ethic is really like the secret sauce.
02:36Some of the songs I wrote in my bedroom in New Jersey,
02:40I remember the day we wrote November Prayer, not thinking much of the song.
02:43What also stuck out to me while watching the docuseries is how for you from the beginning,
02:48you understood the importance of songwriting and you're like, we got to write a good song.
02:52And it reminded me of a pop artist who's very big today, Taylor Swift. For her,
02:57it all comes down to writing good songs and her fans, like your fans are so about the songs,
03:02you know, no matter how many years later. Your songs are your story. And I think the
03:09same thing can be said about someone like Taylor Swift's songs. These are her stories.
03:15And when they ring true to her, chances are those stories will resonate with someone else
03:21who will make those stories their own. And so that to me is the magic of songwriting.
03:28What can your fans expect from your new music you have coming out this summer?
03:32We have a new record. The first single is called Legendary and it's out now and it's actually
03:36exploding on the charts, which is just fabulous to have a hit single 40 years into a career.
03:43But again, because it rings true, it makes perfect sense that people are going to make that
03:50chorus their own lives. And here we are writing about us and how I'm finding joy again for the
03:56first time in 10 years, post-surgery and post-COVID and post-Richie leaving the band.
04:02When it comes from that pure place, people gravitate towards those songs.
04:06Richie Sambora, who left the band in 2013, was also interviewed for the docuseries.
04:11Was there ever a question as to whether or not Richie would be involved in the docuseries?
04:15There wasn't any question like that we wanted him to be involved. I wanted him.
04:21John wanted him. The question was like, will he want to be part of it and will we be able to get
04:27him? And that ended up surprisingly not as difficult maybe as I envisioned, because John
04:35and him are still in touch and they still correspond. And I think maybe through this
04:38process, they got more in touch with each other than they had been in a couple of years.
04:43But I think once Richie understood what the goal and the vision for this was, he
04:50wanted to be a part of it. And it was like, you can't do it. You cannot tell the story of Bon Jovi
04:57without Richie Sambora. He was gracious. He was funny. He was charming. He was warm.
05:02He was combative. It was all of the above. And it was super fun.
05:07Thank You Goodnight The Bon Jovi Story hits Hulu on April 26.
05:10For The Hollywood Reporter News, I'm Tiffany Taylor.