New Jim Morrison documentary delves into his ‘fake’ death conspiracy

A new documentary on The Doors vocalist Jim Morrison is expected to investigate and dispute the circumstances surrounding his death in Paris in 1971, which some think was staged.

A new documentary explores the mystery of Jim Morrison, the renowned frontman of The Doors, and if he truly died or staged an escape.

Jeff Finn’s Before The End, available on Apple TV, aims to shed light on the mystery surrounding Morrison’s death in 1971 due to heart failure.

The film is more than simply a retelling of old stories; it is a fan-driven search for the truth, delving into every aspect of the fatal day Morrison was discovered lifeless in his Parisian bathtub. The documentary suggests that Morrison may have been posing as “Frank” or “Frank X,” a maintenance worker in Syracuse, New York, without an autopsy to confirm his identity.

In 2013, this enigmatic “Frank” appeared in a photo with The Doors’ drummer John Densmore, who shared Morrison’s fondness for certain things.

Jim Morrison died in 1971. (Image:

(Image: Getty.)

Finn, who produced the film with his own firm, has spent nearly four decades researching Morrison’s life and death. According to the Express US, the series begins with a suggestion that “Frank” may be a lookalike super fan.

Morrison’s death on July 3, 1971, shocked the nation when his lover, Pamela Courson, found him in their apartment’s bathtub about 6:00 a.m.

Despite being ruled dead from heart failure, the lack of an autopsy—which is not required under French law—has fuelled suspicion ever since. Courson subsequently recalled Morrison’s disturbing final words while taking his last bath: “Pam, are you still there?”

While she was present, different versions from that night and the next morning have caused uncertainty among admirers. According to Far Out, some ascribe Courson’s contradictions to his drug addiction and the likely impact of the nightclub Morrison frequented prior his dying.

Several musicians who were with Morrison at the club that night allege he used heroin provided by a dealer called Jean de Breteuil. Marianne Faithfull subsequently verified this, claiming that Breteuil had visited Morrison and “killed him”.

She said, “I’m certain it was an accident. Poor B——. Was the smack too strong? Yeah. “And he died.”

According to Doors guitarist Robby Krieger, the circumstances surrounding Morrison’s death were unusual because there were no “rehabs or any of that stuff” at the time.

He said that they had attempted to assist Morrison with his addiction, “but it never worked, and we were hoping that when he went to Paris, it would be a whole different vibe, and maybe he would clean himself up.”

Krieger went further: “That’s what he said, but that’s pretty tough to do on your own [and] unfortunately the opposite happened.”

Sam Bernett, the founder and manager of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Circus nightclub, said he discovered Morrison unconscious in the club’s lavatories after an apparent heroin overdose about 2:00 a.m., and his corpse was removed by two men thought to be drug dealers.

Without an autopsy, these assertions could never be confirmed. Music journalist Ben Fong-Torres said that Morrison’s death was disguised, and reporters who phoned Paris were told that Morrison was not dead but was recovering in a hospital. Morrison’s friend, film director Agnès Varda, admitted to keeping the incident private.

Varda stated in her final interview before her death in 2019 that she was one of just four persons to attend Morrison’s burial.