That demanded attention. The filmmakers were nervous about Neil’s reaction. They’d made the film with love and respect, but they knew that if Neil Diamond publicly criticized it, that could seriously hurt the movie’s reception. Craig Brewer arranged for Neil to see an early screening, and Brewer had a few spies in the room when Diamond watched Song Sung Blue, and his response delighted him.
I was told from his people that they were surprised to see just how enthusiastic he started to get with it, that he was tapping his foot, that he would applaud after each music number, and that he cried. Brewer said CBS Sports Neil Diamond, the man who wrote these songs, who performed them for 50 years in the biggest venues in the world, who heard them sung by millions of people, cried watching Hugh Jackman play a character who performs them in VFW halls and county fairs.
That tells you something profound about what the movie captured. It wasn’t about the grandeur of stardom. It was about the intimacy of connection, about what happens when music stops being entertainment and becomes essential to survival. After the screening, Neil didn’t just send a polite note through his publicist. He came out and grabbed Jackman, saying, “You did good, kid.
” But he was emotional about it, CBS Sports. For Jackman, who had spent months preparing for this role, who had poured himself into understanding the character and honoring Diamond’s music, hearing those words from the legend himself was overwhelming. You did good, kid. Four words that meant everything. But that encounter, as meaningful as it was, could have been the end of the story.
A screening, a brief meeting, mutual respect exchanged, everyone goes home. Except Neil Diamond couldn’t stop thinking about the movie, about Jackman’s performance, about what it all meant. A few days later, Jackman’s phone rang. It was Neil Diamond, not his manager, not his publicist, Neil himself.
Jackman revealed on the Graham Norton show that Diamond called him after watching the movie. So, I took the opportunity. I said, “Guys, I’d love to come around and have a cuppper or something.” And Neil’s like, “Okay, yeah, all right.” And then I didn’t hear from Neil anymore. And Diamond’s wife, Katie, obviously takes the phone and goes, “You know, we’re in Colorado.
” I went, “Okay, I’d still like to come for a cuper.” And she was like, “So, I guess you want to stay the night.” I’m like, “That would be great.” World boxing news. Think about that for a moment. Hugh Jackman, one of the biggest movie stars in the world, star of Billiondoll franchises, internationally recognized icon, was so eager to spend time with Neil Diamond that he was willing to fly to Colorado and stay overnight just for a cuper. That’s not networking.
That’s not publicity. That’s genuine reverence. Jackman could have said, “Yeah, maybe when you’re back in LA, we can grab lunch.” but instead he jumped at the chance even though it meant traveling to another state and imposing on Neil’s hospitality. Neil Diamond lives in Colorado now, far from the Hollywood spotlight, in a place where he can have privacy and peace as he deals with Parkinson’s disease.
His wife Katie has been instrumental in helping him navigate this new phase of life where performing is no longer possible, but music still defines who he is. When Katie realized that Hugh Jackman was serious about flying to Colorado just to visit, she and Neil decided to make it special. So Hugh Jackman, this massively famous actor, flew to Colorado and showed up at Neil Diamond’s house like an excited fan, which in many ways he was.
What happened that night became one of those magical moments that reminds you why people go into the arts in the first place. They had dinner and at dinner time Neil Diamond and Neil Diamond who goes, “You want to do some karaoke?” I’m like, “Hell yeah, we did karaoke.” Jackman recalled CBS Sports. “Stop and picture that scene.
Neil Diamond, 84 years old, dealing with Parkinson’s disease, a man who performed for millions of people in soldout stadiums around the world, is doing karaoke in his living room. And his karaoke partner is Hugh Jackman, who just starred in a movie about people who perform Neil’s songs. The beautiful absurdity of it, the circular nature of the whole thing is almost poetic.
What did they sing? Jackman hasn’t revealed all the details, but you can imagine. Probably some Neil Diamond songs with Neil singing his own compositions on a karaoke machine in his own house. Probably laughing at the strangeness of it all. Maybe some other classics, Sinatra standards or Beatles songs. Just two men who love music sharing that love in the most informal, joyful way possible. Katie Diamond was there, too.
Probably taking videos on her phone that the family will treasure forever. This wasn’t a photo shoot. Wasn’t for social media. Wasn’t for publicity. It was just genuine human connection through music. For Neil, who can no longer perform professionally, who can no longer tour or record the way he once did, that karaoke night was probably a gift, a reminder that music doesn’t have to be perfect or professional to be meaningful.
that singing with someone who understands and appreciates your work is its own kind of performance. For Jackman, it was a masterclass and a validation. Here was the man whose songs he’d spent months learning, whose artistic legacy he’d tried to honor, welcoming him as a friend and equal. The night apparently went so well was so full of laughter and music and connection that Neil started thinking about how to properly thank Jackman for what he’d done, not just for the performance in the movie, but for understanding what the music meant, for
treating it with respect and love, for getting it right. That’s when Neil decided to send the guitar. The guitar case was slightly tattered, signaling that it’s had a busy past life Philippine news agency, meaning this wasn’t a new guitar ordered from a store. This was an instrument that Neil himself had played that had history that had been part of his own musical journey.
Musicians don’t casually give away their instruments. Guitars, especially ones you’ve played extensively, become extensions of yourself. They carry memories of songs written, concerts performed, moments of breakthrough and struggle. When Neil sent that guitar to Jackman, he wasn’t sending merchandise. He was sending a piece of his own artistic life.
The guitar bore a handwritten inscription. Hugh, keep rocking your friend Neil Diamond. World Boxing News. Every word of that inscription matters. Hugh, not Mr. Jackman or to Hugh Jackman, just the first name, intimate and personal. Keep rocking. An encouragement, a blessing, an acknowledgement that Jackman is carrying Diamond’s music forward in his own way.
Your friend, not admirer or fan or colleague, but friend. Neil Diamond, legendary songwriter and performer, considers Hugh Jackman a friend. And then Neil Diamond, signed in his own hand, personal and real. When that package arrived at Jackman’s home and he opened it to reveal the guitar, the emotion we see in the video is completely genuine.
Jackman gasped, “Oh my,” and immediately hugged the guitar. CBS Sports, he didn’t pose with it, didn’t immediately think about how it would look on camera. His first instinct was to embrace it, to hold it close, because he understood what it represented. This wasn’t just an expensive gift from a wealthy man to a famous actor.
