Robbie Williams has been in our hearts for many many years, since he rose to fame in Take That and he's now teamed up with The Greatest Showman Director, Michael Gracey for his very own movie about this life. Better Man sees Rob played by a digital monkey and follows the rise and fall of his incredible fame. Robbie admits he's happy now after the "computer was broken" when he was in Take That. Perhaps he's set for a knighthood too? Better Man is out on Boxing Day in UK cinemas. Report by Jonesl. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00I should be a sir by now. We should put that on billboards.
00:03Yeah, you'll go to the toilet twice.
00:04I went to the toilet twice. I'm from an America, that's what it sounds like.
00:08This is how it should have felt, but didn't.
00:10Lucy, lovely to see you.
00:12Lovely to see you. Rob, I'm Lucy.
00:14You look very glamorous, Lucy.
00:16Do you know what? I last wore a sparkly jacket for the Greatest Showman junket with you.
00:19Really?
00:20Crikey, that was a long time ago.
00:22Fantastic.
00:22So, I'm joined by the Greatest Showman director, Michael Gracie.
00:26Oh, great interview. This is fantastic.
00:29You like that? You like that?
00:30Yeah, that was brilliant.
00:31And Robbie Williams.
00:32Pied.
00:33Can I just say-
00:34My sidekick.
00:35Pied, Greatest Showman, favourite film. Monkeys are favourite animal.
00:39Robbie is my favourite artist of all time.
00:42So, thank you for bringing my world together.
00:44The only thing missing was a Tottenham reference, I guess.
00:48Well, yeah, I'm loving Big Ang instead. There, you've got one now.
00:51Oh, thank you. Guys, the film's my favourite film.
00:54Oh, wow.
00:55I had this smile the whole way through it.
00:57Wow.
00:57I went to the loo twice. Who goes to the toilet in a film? Me, twice.
01:01Because I was so excited. Thank you for making this.
01:05Oh, wow. We should put that on billboards.
01:08Yeah, you'll go to the toilet twice.
01:10I went to the toilet twice.
01:11It was just incredible, and when I explain it to people, it sounds bonkers.
01:14Yeah.
01:15But it's just brilliant, and I think it's having a reaction that you wanted. I want to see it again.
01:18Bless you. Thank you.
01:20And my first ever concert was in 2003.
01:26It was Nebworth.
01:27Did you Photoshop that? Look how ripped you are.
01:29No, I was. I am now.
01:31The original tickets.
01:32Wow.
01:33And I've still got, which I never sent off for, a free concert photo.
01:37Unbelievable.
01:38And guess how much tickets were, guys, in 2003?
01:42I don't know. Go on.
01:4335 quid.
01:44Wow.
01:45You should have charged more, man.
01:48I'm worth way more. I was big back then. Back then.
01:53So, 35 quid.
01:55Can I look at the programme?
01:56Yeah.
01:57I've always tried to be kind, although I think I was being too kind there.
02:01Yes, man.
02:02But I was stood, for the first time ever, around thousands of people feeling electricity through my whole body that I've never felt before.
02:10Is this at the concert?
02:11Yeah. It was at the concert.
02:13So, was it weird for you to see the representation of that gig in the film?
02:18It was bang on, and my favourite thing was no one holding their phones up, which was really refreshing to see.
02:23Yeah.
02:24It was a little bit sad for me, knowing that you were going through what you went through at the time when you did Nebworth,
02:28and when you saw the monkeys in me. Kind of imposter syndrome.
02:32Yeah.
02:33Are you better at that now? How's that going?
02:35Because it's not that I am at home with where I find myself in life.
02:45It's just that it's not an existential crisis, and I don't think about it.
02:49I'm not walking around going, yeah, I've got the most number one albums in England, and I should be a singer by now.
02:58That's not happening.
03:00What accent is that?
03:01It's my pretend American accent that I do.
03:04I like the mouth.
03:05You know, when Americans do an Australian accent, it's nothing like it.
03:09So, I want to do that back to them, going, hey, I'm from America. That's what it sounds like.
03:15So, I'm not having an existential crisis about my standing in life anymore.
03:24Somebody else is driving the car, and he's wiser and older.
03:28The chimp is still in the back, still in the car, but he's not in control.
03:32Me and My Monkey was massive for me, by the way. One of my favourite Robbie songs ever.
03:36And the fact that there was a big monkey at Nedworth, I didn't know it was going to happen.
03:40Why haven't you sung that in the film?
03:42Didn't fit, did it?
03:44Didn't fit. But yeah, no, that's the point.
03:47All the songs in the film are based on narrative moments.
03:50So, what lyrically works in this moment?
03:54And that was just one that didn't have a place, you know?
03:58Me and My Monkey 2, though. Watch out. The Monkey in Vegas. The Hangover.
04:04Yes.
04:05Mitchell.
04:06What is your happiest moment? And we can't include marrying. We can't include babies.
04:10I am currently... I feel like a brand new artist that's experiencing everything for the first time right now.
04:20And I... Yeah, this is how it should have felt, but didn't.
04:26Unfortunately, I'd broken the computer.
04:29I was in Take That, the computer broke.
04:32I then left Take That, did loads of coke.
04:35Continued to smash to bits the computer.
04:37I then took off with my solo career, computer broke.
04:40Input too much.
04:42I put myself back together.
04:44And I am currently experiencing so much joy, so much gratitude.
04:50And happier and happier and happier.
04:53Happier and happier and happier.
04:54And I hope you are in your life too.
04:56I hope that you're noticing the changes in yourself and getting to experience what life should feel like.
05:03And it's emotional listening back to the music, because you've soundtracked my whole life.
05:07Every one of your songs had a moment in my life.
05:10And sitting in that cinema and reliving it was reliving my life as well.
05:13So, thank you so much, guys, for that.
05:15And this Sir thing. You've mentioned the knighthood.
05:18What can we do, Michael, to get this... How do we get this Sir?
05:23I mean, I've done everything I can. I made a whole film about it.
05:26He's done his bit. He's done his bit. We'll see what happens. We'll see what happens.
05:30And the kids, by the way. Are you going to let them see this? When do they see it?
05:34Later in life.
05:36Yeah, that's the answer that we should give.
05:39Teddy snuck into a screening. She sat at the back and I didn't know.
05:44And I was just like, oh my god, you now know too much about your dad.
05:48But like, Teddy, my elder, she really wants this. She wants this thing.
05:53And I'm like, babe, it's honestly... And she's like, sure, old man.
05:58But then after the movie, it was a screening at our house and she was like,
06:03can I walk around the garden with you, Daddy?
06:05And I'm like, yeah. And she held my hand and she said, I get it.
06:10So emotional. And just finally, what would Grandma think right now, seeing this?
06:14Her head would be blown. She'd be super proud.
06:17But she didn't understand toasters or video recorders.
06:22So this would just be like, what?
06:28But my grandma was my representation of unconditional love.
06:33And because of her, I know what that looks like and I know what that feels like.
06:37And hopefully I can represent that in some way to the people in my lives.
06:42She was the most special and important person to ever existed for me on the planet.
06:47And she'd be like, I didn't know monkeys could dance and sing.
06:50Yeah, yeah. Yeah.
06:52Alison Steadman did an incredible job representing her.
06:55We were so fortunate to get Alison to do that.
06:58Yeah, it's incredible.