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Better Man, the biopic on the Bad Boy of Pop, Robbie Williams, is receiving positive reviews all over. The film chose a unique creative direction of portraying the central character as a chimpanzee. The fantastical portrayal is due to Williams’ self-perception of being a“performing monkey”. Raechelle Banno portrayed All Saints member Nicole Appleton, who was briefly engaged to Williams.
Banno opened up about playing the love interest of a chimpanzee, motion-captured by Jonno Davies, in the movie. She shared that she never treated the character like a monkey, as was the instruction from the makers. She shared that she could be intimate with the character as her perception of the character was still human.
Better Manstar Raechelle Banno explains how she romanced Robbie Williams as a chimpanzee
The Greatest Showmandirector Michael Gracey returns with a musical biopic with a twist. During his earlier film, Gracey became friends withRobbie Williams. The former Take That band member discussed a biopic thread with Gracey and was“completely and utterly obsessed”with the director’s idea ofportraying him as a monkey(via USA Today).
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Williams played the narrator in the filmBetter Manand provided vocals during the singing portions.Huntersactor Jonno Davies provided the motion capture and voice of the character. During the press interview for the film, Raechelle Banno, who played Williams’ fiancée Nicole Appleton, explained in detail her experience of romancing a CGI Robbie Williams.
She shared that the idea in the film was only Williams saw himself as a monkey while no one else did. She shared that the instruction to everyone on set was along this line and added that she didn’t treat him like a monkey. She shared that it was just her and Davies playing out their on-screen romance on the set. Banno shared (via DiscussingFilm/YouTube):
Well, the great thing about this is the whole perspective is from ‘Robbie sees himself as a monkey, no one else does.’ And that was also the instruction for us. I don’t treat him like a monkey. And so when it was us on set, it was just us playing…
Banno further added that Davies was in a stunning motion-capture suit. It was easier for her to lock in and be intimate with the actor directly. She shared that the CGI aspect didn’t interfere much with their play on the set. Banno shared:
Jonno has this very stunning suit on. It’s gray and got ping pong balls all over it. But it is just him. And it meant that we could just lock in and become intimate, really grounded together. And I think that the CGI aspect was this beautiful movie magic on top. It wasn’t a part of our play on the day.
Davies added that the technology provided freedom for them to make their intimacy more human. According to USA Today, Davies also carried a helmet camera to catch his every expression like eyebrow rise, chin stroke, and others.
Better Manalmost never happened due to the delay in filming one scene
Better Manwas first announced withMichael Graceyat the helm in February 2021. Out of this long making time for a movie, it took almost a year and a half to film one scene. It was the film’s most impressive sequence as Williams’ 2000 hit,Rock DJ, was shot as a musical on London’s Regent Street.
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Gracey needed permission from the Westminster City Council and the Crown Estate. Moreover, he had to close a bus route for four nights to accommodate 500 dancers. When they were ready to film the scene, they received news that Queen Elizabeth II had passed and the filming had to be put on hold.
Gracey recalled the situation to USA Today,“All of the money we paid and the shops we booked and the crew and everything, that money was all gone.”The studio wasn’t too happy to fund the scene again and even suggested he cut the number from the film. Gracey had to convince the studio,“You don’t understand, this is the centerpiece musical number of the film.”
The scene was eventually filmed and it resulted in a significant delay of the film. Gracey shared that he almost thought the film would never see the light of day after“such enormous obstacles”. While watching the film in theaters during its Australian debut, Gracey thought to himself,“People have no idea how close this came to never happening.”
Better Manis currently running in theaters.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3018
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
