When one imagines a musical biopic of storied singer-songwriter Robbie Williams, a CGI chimpanzee in the lead role is not an obvious choice. However, Better Man, in the hands of writer-director producer Michael Gracey (The Greatest Showman), sees that proverbial ‘performing monkey’, played by Jonno Davies, become key to a poignant tale of dehumanizing celebrity. As Williams puts it, “It is a very special magic trick. It desensitizes and sensitizes you all at the same time. We have deep empathy and compassion for animals, way more than we do for humans.”
In 1990, Williams shot to fame aged just 16 in the British boy band Take That. Better Man documents his early family life, his struggle with celebrity and addiction and his journey to recovery and resolution, set to the sound of his own music. Here, Williams digs into his feelings about the film, his career memories and what he loves to see onscreen.
My Story On Screen
[Take That bandmate] Mark [Owen], reached out last week and was like, “Hey, Rob, me and the lads are all going to be in town. Can we see a screening of Better Man?” And I was like, “Yes. I’d love you to.” Which of course I would, but also, I’m terrified because our relationship is so complicated and so healed that returning to the scene of the crime and talking in the way that I talked as a 17-year-old is bound to open old wounds for people. [My ex-girlfriend] Nicole [Appleton] went to see it last week with Natalie, her sister. I FaceTimed them all straight after the film and we all wept together. I don’t know how Liam [Gallagher]’s going to behave about being in the film. It’ll be interesting. The bit I’m most concerned about is my dad because he’s a crucial part of that film. And what doesn’t come across in the film is how charismatic and charming and wonderful to be around my dad is.
Howard Donald, Gary Barlow and Mark Owen of Take That.
Ian West/PA Images via Getty Images
My First TV Lesson
Our first performance on TV was on BSkyB, and I think that about 100 people in Great Britain probably had satellite dishes in their homes at the time. We were in the Granada Studios in Manchester and Michaela Strachan was the host. It was overwhelming and scary. I was already aware that my place in the band wasn’t safe. And the management at the time had made me aware that they were unhappy with my progress, so I was terrified. Normally when you perform, you’re just terrified because of performance anxiety, and then you’re exhilarated because something exciting has happened. But I was exhilarated to be on TV and also sad that my livelihood and my future were in peril.
The Best Advice I Ever Received
To me, this made total sense. It’s embrace the madness. It changed my outlook on my job and what I do. You try and protect yourself and control what is happening to you so much, this overwhelming fuckery that happens, you push back against it so much. And since I’ve seen my job as a job and since I’ve had kids and daddy goes to work, and since I have embraced the madness, my life has got a whole lot better and I’m so grateful. I’m so grateful to be who I am, to have what I have, and to experience what I experience. And the sad thing is that in all of my pomp, I experienced no joy whatsoever. Now there is heaps of joy and heaps of excitement. I get to claim my place in the world, feel comfortable in it and enjoy it. And that is a huge gift.
The Part I Always Wanted
When I was growing up, I thought I was going to be an actor. And I auditioned for a boy band by mistake and got in. And I’ve been playing the part of a pop star ever since. This is me acting as if I am my script writer. I am directing the shit show. But that being said, actual acting, I don’t want to do that. That whole thing about, “And now we shoot from a different angle.” I’m just taking five steps and I turn right and we’ve got to shoot that three different ways to Sunday and we’re going to do it until 3 o’clock this afternoon. When do I get to go and say things? That is 5% of your job. The rest of it is fucking boring.
My Toughest Career Experience
Having a panic attack for two hours in front of 75,000 people in Leeds 2006. It changed my life because it was such a traumatic experience that I had to take evasive action. And from that moment, very slowly, I’m the person that I am today. I went away and retired. It was that huge in my head: This is killing me. Then my brain started to turn to Swiss cheese because I had no purpose. And I realized, this is why people die when they retire. So, I put purpose in front of myself and my first purpose was to figure out how to do this and enjoy it.
The Films That Make Me Cry
I don’t watch films that make me cry. I stay away from them, because I don’t need melancholy because that’s how I feel between my ears anyway. I want escape and silliness. So, anything that’s going to depress me, anything that’s going to make me sad, anything that’s going to make me cry, I avoid as if recoiling from a hot flame. Because of my ‘isms’ that’s where I am anyway. Why do I go down that street? That’s where I’m trying to escape from. Give me Housewives of Orange County. All the Housewives.
The Real Housewives of Orange County.
Bravo / Nicole Weingart / Getty Images
The Most Fun I’ve Had at Work
I’ve got to say that it’s right now with Better Man, it’s truly exciting. I feel like a new artist that’s just been signed. And the excitement of what this new-found world could mean. And I would say that the most fun I’m having is right now is because I may have the opportunity to have another bite out of the apple and experience and derive joy from the gifts that have been given to me. And it feels like with a glint in my eye that that might be about to happen.
The Role I’d Want to Play
Dr. Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show. That bit where he comes down in the lift and he’s got his suspenders on. “How do you do? I see you’ve met my faithful handyman.” Because it’s fun and it’s silly and it’s dark and it’s stupid and it’s massive and it’s glorious. I am not one of those people that needs or wants to, or ever will, play Othello or Hamlet. But like I said earlier on, I don’t want to do three angles of me opening the door.
The Character That’s Most Like Me
I think they’re all people that I would like to be, not something that reminds me of me. Danny Zuko was like, I want to be that. I want to live in the ’50s, ’60s. I want to go to that school. I want to have that life. I want to be that good-looking with that jaw. And so, I don’t know if there are characters that are, oh, that’s me. It’s all characters that I want to be.
My Most Quoted Lyrics
That doesn’t happen. Not for a long time. There’s not that gathering of fans outside the hotel now. Everybody’s got kids or grandkids. I think they understand the folly of turning up to a stranger’s hotel to go and sing songs at him. Yeah. That doesn’t happen.
Read the digital edition of Deadline’s Oscar Preview magazine here.
My Guilty Pleasure
I don’t have guilty viewing. My viewing is my viewing. I’ll tell you at the moment, I’m very happy that there’s football games, Premier League and Port Vale division two. But I’m unhappy that Big Brother doesn’t broadcast on a Saturday, and Married at First Sight is only on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. With MAFS, cut to the chase and just do the Australian one because that’s the daddy. Their psych tests aren’t so stringent, I think. It’s just amazing to watch human behavior and duplicitous actions. It’s a soap and it’s Shakespearean. It’s wonderful.
Who Would Play Me in My Biopic
Well, we got the perfect person with Jonno Davies in Better Man. But what was that lad’s name with the cheeky face that’s great and he’s from London and he’s about 33? He’s in that film with Harry Styles in it? [Pause] OK, so who I was thinking of isn’t in that film, so I’ll go with Barry Keoghan.
My karaoke playlist
I don’t do Karaoke. It’s not my thing. It’s the equivalent of you saying, “OK let’s have an evening where we all get together and do some journalism. What’s your favorite thing to write about?” I don’t do it. Why? Because it’s my job.