‘Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party,’ Cameron Crowe’s Long Lost 1983 Documentary, Releases on Paramount+
Today, March 11, the Tom Petty Estate has opened the late icon’s vault with the long-awaited streaming release of Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party. The 1983 film directed by Cameron Crowe has been coveted by fans since its fleeting premiere for its intimate, free-wheeling view of Petty’s heyday. Over 40 years later, the documentary is finally widely available for a global audience, complete with a wealth of never-before-seen bonus content.
Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party was filmed with the band during the studio finalization, promotion and touring cycle for Long After Dark in 1982. This behind-the-scenes account from the director of Almost Famous, Jerry Maguire and Pearl Jam Twenty was presented only once on MTV in February 1983 before being shelved and forgotten. The original 16mm tapes of the mythical film were uncovered last year and meticulously remastered alongside 20 minutes of unseen live performances, interviews and commentary from Crowe to create a powerful time capsule of the heartland rock trailblazer’s reign.
“Heartbreakers Beach Party occupies a special place in my heart,” Crowe said in a release. “Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers leaned into the making of the film with a kind of hilarious music-filled honesty that still feels fresh forty years later. It was also my first experience as a director. Thanks to Adria Petty and the Petty estate, along with our co-filmmakers Danny Bramson, Phil Savenick, Doug Dowdle and Greg Mariotti, we’re bringing it back in all its reckless glory. I’m especially happy to add a postscript with the never-seen outtake footage I always treasured. The fact that the original film was yanked from MTV after only one airing shows that it was, and still is, an outlandish feast for fans in the best ways. Turn it up!!”
Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party is available now exclusively via Paramount+. Read more about the film and last year’s expanded remaster of Long After Dark here. Watch a new trailer for the documentary below.
