Robbie Williams and his portrayal as a CGI chimpanzee in Better Man. Photo / Getty Images, Paramount Pictures
Robbie Williams and his portrayal as a CGI chimpanzee in Better Man. Photo / Getty Images, Paramount Pictures
Robbie Williams knows his new biopic is a little left field, with the star portrayed as a CGI chimpanzee instead of a typical actor, but he told Newstalk ZB’s Francesca Rudkin he is “over the moon” with the final product.
Williams, 50, spoke on The Sunday Session on November 15 to discuss his recent film Better Man, and the Rock DJ singer said he “can’t believe the final, finished thing”.
“I’m overwhelmed by the response that it’s having, because the first time I saw it, I was like, ‘this is mind blowing’,” Williams said.
Still, the star said he was “prone to ego and narcissism” and expressed doubt about his opinion.
“Maybe I just think it’s the best thing I’ve ever seen because it’s about me, and then I was like, ‘Oh no, what if it’s a turd?”
Williams admitted he didn’t know whether his film has been a success, but he acknowledged people like Rudkin had come back with “really positive” feedback.
Robbie Williams performing on stage in Germany in 2022. Photo / Getty Images
“Lots of people are going back to watch it for a second and third time. It’s not even out yet!”
Rudkin watched an advanced screening of Better Man, which is released in New Zealand cinemas on December 26, and said it would be a “fantastic experience” with a full theatre.
Williams agreed, citing the Rock DJ sequence as one of its best moments.
“I do notice that when Rock DJ‘s on, I’m rocking out in the chair, and then I look around the cinema and I seem to be the only person that’s rocking out this much."
“Once again, narcissism,” the former Take That member quipped to Rudkin.
After seeing the film 10 times, Williams said he’d stopped crying watching it, but that “doesn’t mean the tears have stopped stopped.”
Williams teamed up with director Michael Gracie to create Better Man, and Williams credits Gracie with the “brilliant idea” of having him portrayed as a chimpanzee.
“I think the thing is with biopics now, we’ve seen them, we know the format, it’s long, we’re getting a bit bored, and he understood that we needed a USP (unique selling point), and boy, did he come up with one,” Williams explained.
Robbie Williams as a CGI chimpanzee in Better Man. Photo / Paramount Pictures
Williams said the idea of being portrayed as a “performing monkey” throughout his career resonated with him.
“I want to do unusual things because I’ve been chasing the past for the last 10 years and in chasing the past, I’ve become a bit vanilla.
“I never was, you know. I had ideas that were unusual, like the Rock DJ video ... and the documentary, me in bed in my underpants ... going forward, I’d like to carry on with this trait."
Despite the film delving into his tumultuous past as a world-famous young man who strayed down the path of alcohol and drugs, Williams said it was important his story was told as truthfully as possible.
“I try my best to live a very authentic life, and shine the light hopefully on my best bits and ... on my worst bits too. People seem to respond to authenticity.”
Having the “it” factor as a lifelong entertainer, Williams said you “have to shine it and believe that you have it somewhere in you to transcend and project it.”
Rudkins asked if Williams was worried about being judged for his honesty in the film, where he opens up about his mental health, treatment, and journey to sobriety, and he said it’s something he’s grappled with his whole career.
While he faced criticism throughout the 90s and 2000s in the press and from the public, Williams said he’s now being “lauded for saying things that I used to be derided for”.
Robbie Williams during a Better Man special screening at Le Grand Rex in Paris, France. Photo / Getty Images
The film covers aspects of Williams losing himself in the fame, and he told Newstalk ZB he’s still “baffled” by what it really is, saying he’d like to see a “scientific breakdown for the layman” that asks: “Why do we become fractured when introduced to fame?”
“We all have these theories based on presumptions that we don’t really know are true. Overbearing workload, that’s a given. No one there to say no for you and no one to fully understand when no should be the answer, also a given. No one asking if you’re okay and often no one listening when you’re trying to say you’re not okay. And you, yourself, not recognising you are not okay.”
“It’s like a drug, and I don’t mean addictive like, ‘I’ve got to have more'. I mean, like a psychedelic experience without the good bits.
“It’s a psychedelic experience that you don’t know you’re having because you haven’t ingested anything or snorted anything. You’re just on the telly.”
As well as being a retelling of his career, Better Man is just as much a family drama that covers the star’s personal relationships with his mother, grandmother, and father.
“I think my dad gets a rough ride in the movie and, in many ways, I don’t think that’s fair.”
Williams stressed there was “no ill feeling” towards his father and said he was “a better father than how he’s depicted in the film”.
