Unleashed Spirits: The Rise of the Hollywood Vampires, the new music documentary from prolific director Daniel E. Catullo III, will have its World Premiere to open the 42nd Annual Boston Film Festival at the historic Boch Center Wang Theatre on Friday, September 18. Tickets are available – Click Here!
A secret 1970’s drinking and social club led by Alice Cooper inspired the powerhouse supergroup known as the Hollywood Vampires with Cooper, Johnny Depp, Joe Perry and Tommy Henriksen. Unleashed Spirits explores their journey from a hidden Hollywood haunt to arena rock stardom, highlighting their extraordinary collaborations with legendary talent on and behind the stage. Unleashed Spirits takes audiences inside their evolution as a band from the earliest rehearsals and recording sessions to increasingly ambitious performances around the globe. The film chronicles the band’s transformation from an improbable gathering of famous friends into a formidable live act capable of commanding some of the world’s biggest stages.
At its heart, Unleashed Spirits is about friendship: the unlikely bond between artists from very different worlds who discovered a shared sanctuary in music. It explores what happens when people who have spent much of their lives surrounded by fame find a place where none of that matters. Onstage, they aren’t an iconic shock-rock pioneer, one of the world’s most recognizable actors, one of the greatest guitarists of his generation, and a renowned musician and producer. They are simply bandmates.
Daniel E. Catullo III is an Emmy Award–winning director and producer whose career spans more than three decades across feature documentaries, concert films, live television, music videos, and major entertainment events.
Catullo has built his career creating ambitious, cinematic projects with some of the most influential artists in music. His extensive body of work includes acclaimed concert films and television specials such as Rush in Rio, Foo Fighters: Live at the Acropolis, Alicia Keys: Live from NYC, and projects with legendary tenor Andrea Bocelli, among scores of other major productions. His work has taken him around the world, capturing iconic artists and performances in extraordinary locations while combining the scale and energy of live music with cinematic storytelling.
More recently, Catullo has expanded his focus as a director and producer of premium feature documentaries and theatrical concert films. His recent projects include 4000 Days, a powerful feature documentary chronicling three families’ decade-long fight to end fraternity hazing; Frampton, an intimate portrait of legendary guitarist Peter Frampton; Katy Perry: The Lifetimes Tour – Live from Paris, a large-scale concert film capturing Perry’s global tour; and Alicia Keys: The Girl From Hell’s Kitchen. All four films debuted at the 2026 Tribeca Festival, marking a significant milestone in Catullo’s career as both a producer and filmmaker.
His growing slate also includes projects with Hilary Duff and Godsmack, continuing a career defined by extraordinary access, ambitious production, iconic musical performances, and deeply personal storytelling.
Bandleader Alice Cooper pioneered a grandly theatrical brand of hard rock that was designed to shock. Drawing equally from horror movies, vaudeville, and garage rock, the group created a stage show that featured electric chairs, guillotines, fake blood and boa constrictors. He continues to tour regularly, performing shows worldwide with the dark and horror-themed theatrics that he’s best known for.
With a schedule that includes six months each year on the road, Alice Cooper brings his own brand of rock psychodrama to fans both old and new, enjoying it as much as the audience does. Known as the architect of shock-rock, Cooper (in both the original Alice Cooper band and as a solo artist) has rattled the cages and undermined the authority of generations of guardians of the status quo, continuing to surprise fans and exude danger at every turn, like a great horror movie, even in an era where CNN can present real life shocking images.
While Johnny Depp may need no introduction, Depp’s musical talent, background and knowledge truly emerges in this film. Depp actually began his career as a musician performing in several rock bands before making his feature film debut in A Nightmare on Elm Street back in 1984; he was a member of the Florida group Rock City Angels in 1981 and was a member of the alt-rock act P formed in early 1993 by Butthole Surfers frontman Gibby Haynes Depp, Sal Jenco, Bill Carter. He was also a longtime friend, colleague and co-creator with renowned guitarist Jeff Beck, and the two collaborated on a studio album, 18, released in 2023.
As co-founding member, principal songwriter, electrifying lead guitarist and co-producer of Aerosmith, “America’s Greatest Rock & Roll Band,” Joe Perry has achieved permanent iconic stature in the pantheon of rock. He has helped to drive his band, over the course of three decades, to sales of more than 150 million albums, critical acclaim, four Grammy Awards and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. JOE PERRY’s work with Aerosmith has resulted in an unending array of accolades and honors. Beyond their Grammy Awards and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, other key milestones over the past 35 years include: 12 MTV Video Awards; two People’s Choice Awards; six Billboard Music Awards; eight American Music Awards; 23 Boston Music Awards; and an Academy Award? nomination for Best Song, “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing.”
Guitar player, singer, producer and musical director for the Hollywood Vampires, Tommy Henrisken is renowned for his work as a guitarist, bassist and songwriter with Alice Cooper, Crossbone Skully and German metal band Warlock, among others. He’s also fronted punk rockers P.O.L. and released several albums as a solo artist. In addition, Henriksen is a songwriter, arranger, producer and mixer who has worked with artists such as Lady Gaga, Meat Loaf, Lou Reed, Halestorm, Kesha, and Daughtry.
The world premiere screening takes place Friday, September 18, 7:00PM EDT at the Boch Center Wang Theatre, 270 Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02116. In person at Boston Film Festival: band members Alice Cooper, Joe Perry and Tommy Henriksen; film director Daniel E. Catullo III; executive producers Ernie Boch, Jr., Paul Geary and more TBD.