Why is Robbie Williams a monkey in biopic Better Man?

Take That singer Robbie Williams is the latest musician to get the biopic treatment, with the pop star’s movie Better Man heading to the big screen this Christmas.

Directed by Michael Gracey, the Australian filmmaker behind 2017’s musical hit The Greatest Showman, Better Man promises to take viewers through the journey of Williams’ life and career so far, complete with an added ‘fantastical’ approach.

Gracey will approach Williams’ rise to pop stardom with a satirical eye — with the musician portrayed on screen by a CGI ape — meaning that Better Man is shaping up to be one of the more unusual musical biopics of late. Here’s what you know about it.

Why is Robbie Williams played by a monkey in Better Man?

Better Man, which will arrive in UK cinemas on Boxing Day, has been a long time coming, having initially been announced in 2021. The film was shot in London, and Australia throughout 2022, with director and movie co-writer Gracey taking the production to Melbourne’s Dockland Studios.

It will take a larger-than-life look at Williams’ life and unlikely career as one of the UK’s most successful pop stars, and how he was mistreated by many people in the industry. The film will chronicle the singer’s journey from Take That singer to successful solo star — but won’t be told in a typical way.

Talking about the decision to portray the musician as a Planet of the Apes-style simian, Gracey said: “I asked [Robbie Williams]: ‘If you were an animal, how would you see yourself?’ In your words, you would refer to being dragged up on stage to perform like a monkey.

“I immediately thought portraying you not as we see you, but as how you see yourself. It immediately clicked in a way that I was like... with your voice and that monkey, I am going to see you, and relate to you in a way that is going to be more engaging than yet another musical biopic.”

Watch: Robbie Williams and Michael Gracey discuss Better Man

He added: “It’s this fantastical story, and I want to represent it in its harsh reality all the way to these moments of pure fantasy. Unlike some people who were born prodigies or geniuses and you follow the narrative of the world catching up to their brilliance, this isn’t that story.

“Robbie is that Everyman, who just dreamed big and followed those dreams and they took him to an incredible place. Because of that, his [story] is an incredibly relatable [one]. He’s not the best singer, or dancer, and yet, he managed to sell 80 million records worldwide.”

Meanwhile, Williams’ wife Ayda Field told Loose Women: “The concept is really how Rob sees himself and how the world looks at him. He’s the performing monkey. In his words he’s unevolved because he joined a band when he was 15 and they say when you become famous that’s the age you stop growing. But really it’s that the world looks at him one way and he looks at it another.

“Everyone else in the movie is human except for him. There is this real separation when you’re a performer that people stop looking at you as a person, they look at you as something else. So his experience in life is through a completely different lens.”

The film synopsis explains: “Better Man looks at the rise, fall and resurrection of Robbie Williams – one of the UK’s bestselling artists of all time. Michael Gracey will shine light on the incredible highs and lows of celebrity and the journey to stardom, inspired by Williams’ life and how he sees himself.”

Who is in the Better Man cast?

Actor Jonno Davies will bring the ex-Take That star to life on screen via the magic of performance capture. He also voices the character, but leaves the singing to Robbie Williams himself. Talking about the challenges of the film, Davies told ScreenRant: “It was working alongside Michael and [visual effects company] Wētā and creating this walking, talking, life-fulfilling monkey that was representing a global superstar and telling that story in a very different way.”

While portrayed as a monkey, don't expect any acrobatics from Robbie. “We never focused on playing Rob as a monkey,” said Davies. “I wasn’t walking around on all fours or beating my chest. It was very much playing a human, knowing that Wētā afterwards would render it into this new world. We didn’t have to focus on that side of the performance.”

Williams is said to have found the experience of playing himself in the movie a bit “odd”, saying it was weird to be sitting in “make-up and the lady that’s playing your grandma is sitting next to you, and the people playing your mum and dad.”

Speaking of which, Inside No. 9 star Steve Pemberton will play Williams’ father Peter, with Gavin and Stacey’s Alison Steadman portraying his mother Betty.

His Take That bandmates will also be represented within Better Man, with Jake Simmance playing Gary Barlow, Liam Head as Howard Donald, Chase Vollenweider as Jason Orange and Jesse Hyde as Mark Owen.

The film will also feature appearances from Mindhunter’s Damon Herriman, The Boys' Anthony Hayes and The Great Gatsby actress Kate Mulvany. The cast list is rounded out by Frazer Hadfield, Chris Gun, Jake McMinn, Jamie Condon and Damon Herriman.

The Better Man soundtrack will include a number of sing-a-long classics from Williams’ back catalogue, including Angels, Rock DJ, Come Undone and Feel.

Better Man will be released in cinemas on Thursday, 26 December