AHEAD OF HIS HARD-HITTING NEW BIOPIC 'BETTER MAN' ROBBIE WILLIAMS

ON PAST MISTAKES - AND WHY HIS NEW ON-SCREEN PERSONA IS A MONKEY

- GILL PRINGLE

When Robbie Williams was discussing a biopic of his rollercoaster life, the topic turned to who would play the lead role. What the pop superstar wasn’t expecting, however, was that he would end up being depicted as a monkey.

But although he was initially taken aback by the unusual concept, it didn’t take long to persuade him that it was a great idea for the fantasy musical Better Man.

“He’s a monkey, he’s in a boyband, he’s a solo artist… but I also think it’s a very, very human story about the human condition, and the lack of self-worth and the insecurities and the wanting to be loved and the wanting to be seen and wanting to be heard,” Robbie says.

“So it’s a story for all of us – because we are human and we want to be loved, just like everybody else does.”

The film takes an unflinching look at the ups and downs of his life: from his absent father, through joining Take That as the band’s youngest member at 16, to his solo fame and subsequent spirals into alcoholism, substance abuse, mental illness, obesity and self-esteem issues – as well as his heartbreak when his former girlfriend Nicole Appleton was pressured into aborting their baby.

Robbie’s computer-generated character is not only voiced by him; his piercing blue-green eyes were also scanned into every image to convey his yearning and emotion.

As we sit down to chat in Los Angeles, Robbie, 50, recalls how director Michael Gracey – the man behind The Greatest Showman – pitched the concept to him, reasoning that a monkey would have more of an emotional impact than merely casting an actor.

GETTING THE GREEN LIGHT

“He said: ‘I’ve got this idea that everybody in the movie is human apart from you, and you’re a CGI monkey.’ Before the sentence was finished, I was totally sold on it. And I’m like: ‘Yes, that’s genius and I totally see it,’” Robbie says.