Judas Priest will be the subject of a new documentary co-directed by Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello.
The Birmingham metal veterans today (May 21) announced via Variety that The Ballad Of Judas Priest, directed by Morello and Sam Dunn (Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey), will come out via Sony Music Vision, in association with Sony Music Entertainment UK and Epic Records.
Morello and Dunn say that the film, the release date of which is yet to be announced, will trace Priest’s “incredible 50-year journey” and “capture how Judas Priest both defined the sound and look of metal [and] made it a more inclusive place along the way”.
The band comment: “We have lived and breathed metal for over five decades, and finally in this documentary we are summoning our congregation to officially witness our lives uncensored, in a never-before-seen way… the cassock comes off, revealing Priest in all its metal glory!”
Dunn’s Banger Films produced The Ballad Of Judas Priest, with Morello also serving as executive producer and Dunn as co-producer. As well as the Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey documentary, Banger Films have made live albums and concert films with Iron Maiden, Rush, ZZ Top and more.
The Ballad Of Judas Priest’s announcement adds to what was already shaping up to be a blockbuster 2025 for the band. They recently wrapped up the touring cycle for their 2024 album Invincible Shield but have plenty more live plans for the coming months, including co-headline shows with shock rock icon Alice Cooper, a set at the 60th-anniversary celebration for hard rockers Scorpions, and dates celebrating the 35th anniversary of their landmark 1990 album Painkiller.
See all of the band’s upcoming concerts via their website.
As well as being The Ballad Of Judas Priest’s co-director, Morello is the musical director for the upcoming Black Sabbath farewell show, taking place at Villa Park in Birmingham on July 5. Priest are one of very few high-profile metal acts to not be on the stacked bill, about which singer Rob Halford said he’s “gutted” in a recent Metal Hammer interview.
Priest aren’t the first long-serving UK metal band to recently announce a documentary. In March, Iron Maiden revealed that they’ll be the subject of a film, due out later this year. It will be part of the London-based titans 50th-anniversary festivities, which start next week with a headline tour across Europe.
