Michael Gracey, the Director of 2017 hit musical The Greatest Showman, is set to direct a film based on the life and career of Robbie Williams.

Better Man will be a coming-of-age story charting the rise to global stardom of the former Take That singer, as well as exploring his demons. Many of Williams’ hit songs, such as ‘Angels’, ‘Come Undone’ and ‘Supreme’, will be re-sung for the film, in order to “capture the emotion of the moment” according to the director. 

Others involved in the film include first-time screenwriters Oliver Cole and Simon Gleeson, alongside producers Jules Daly for Big Red Films (The Tomorrow War), Craig McMahon for McMahon International (Three Thousand Years of Longing) and Michael Gracey. Production is set to begin this summer. It is not known what, if any, part Williams himself will play in the film’s development, although he has sat for in depth interviews with the director.

When speaking to Deadline, director Gracey said: “As for how we represent Robbie in the film, that bit is top secret. I want to do this in a really original way. I remember going to the cinema as a kid and there were films that blew me away and made me say as I sat there in the cinema, ‘I’ve never seen this before.’ I just want the audience to have that feeling.

“The biopic will focus on Williams being an “everyman”. Unlike some people who were born prodigies or musical 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 is an incredibly relatable story. He’s not the best singer, or dancer, and yet, he managed to sell 80 million records worldwide.

“You can relate to the guy who doesn’t see himself as having any extraordinary talent, even though of course, he does. What he did have is the will, vision, and confidence to say, I’m going to pursue my dream. For us as an audience, it’s a window into the world, of what if we just went for it and chased that impossible dream that so many of us put to one side.”

What do you think Besties?