A great soundtrack can help take a movie to the next level, but in order to get the classics everyone loves, the film must fork over some serious money. That’s why many were shocked when two Led Zeppelin songs appeared in the indie film ‘The Friend.’ While normally an indie film wouldn’t be able to afford adding a Led Zeppelin song to the soundtrack, Robert Plant was reportedly so moved by the movie, he allowed them to use both ‘Going to California’ and ‘Ramble On’ in the movie.
The indie film, ‘The Friend’ premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on Friday, but the final version wasn’t done until two days prior as the filmmakers waiting for approval on the two Led Zeppelin songs. The film’s director, along with producer Ridley Scott reached out to the surviving members of Led Zeppelin in hopes of getting them to wave the astronomical fee that comes with including one of their songs in a movie. Once Robert Plant saw the movie, he wrote back saying “while the film was a tough one to sit through, it was beautiful and strong,” and allowed for the two songs to remain in the film.
It is unknown what exactly the price is to include a Led Zeppelin song in a movie, but the indie film was made on a $10 million budget, and paying for the two songs would have reportedly cost a third of their budget. However, the fee was waved and the Led Zeppelin songs will forever remain in ‘The Friend.’
Via Rolling Stone