The first trailer for ‘Better Man’ has been released, and it features something very unusual – Robbie is portrayed as a CGI monkey.
‘Better Man’ tells the story of Robbie Williams’ rise to fame. It starts with his childhood and leads to his success with the boy band Take That. It then follows his solo career where 11 of his 12 studio albums reached number one on the UK charts. Robbie also holds the record for winning the most Brit Awards – 13 in total.
Actor Jonno Davies uses motion capture technology to bring Williams’ story to life as a CGI monkey in the biopic. The movie doesn’t shy away from showing the darker sides of Robbie’s life like his drug problems and controversial behavior as a star. One of the film’s most bizarre scenes involves a CGI chimp taking substances with the members of Oasis.
‘Better Man’ is directed by Michael Gracey. Gracey is the same person behind ‘The Greatest Showman,’ which made $435 million at the box office.
Critics who saw the movie at the Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals gave it positive reviews. Benjamin Lee from The Guardian called it a surprising success, writing, “From afar, it sounded like an intensely annoying gimmick, perhaps fitting for an entertainer who can often be intensely annoying himself, but the film … is a surprising winner.” And Variety praised how the CGI monkey idea worked pretty well.
‘Better Man’ will hit theaters on Christmas Day in most places. It will also have a Boxing Day release in the UK.