Robbie Williams’ “A Top Man” Faces Challenges in Its Opening Weekend at US Box Offices

Challenges faced by best man

New Robbie Williams biopic Best Man endured a difficult weekend in US cinemas.

• READ MORE: Robbie Williams and Director Michael Gracey on Their Bananas, CGI Monkeys in 'Top Man' Biopic: 'It's Healing'

Film overview and box office performance

The semi-autobiographical film, which features the star as a CGI chimpanzee, tells the story of his life and career, from his early days as a child to his first success with boy band Take That.

Best Man was released in the UK on December 26, and in the US it was distributed to over 1,200 cinemas on January 10. Diversity The film only grossed $580,000 (£475,000) on its opening day, which would be seen as a major disappointment.

Directed by The Greatest Showman‘s Michael Gracie, the film was made on an estimated budget of $110 million (£90 million) and earned a total of £3.8 million in its first two weekends in UK cinemas, according to Film Distributors Association.

Critical reception and artist reflections

In a three-star film review, NME wrote: “Best Man starts out like a John Lewis advert and turns into an R-rated mishmash that somehow does too much while barely touching the career of Robbie Williams. It's the Rudebox of a movie: some good, some very bad, but it's all kind of a mess. However, a musical with monkeys is a big step that no one else would take. You can't blame chutzpah or ambition. If he returns the stated budget, we will eat $110 million worth of bananas.”

The film also includes a new track, “Forbidden Road”, although the song was recently excluded from the Best Original Song shortlist at the Oscars because it included “material from an existing song that was not written” for the film. It includes an excerpt from Jim Croce's book I Have a Name, written by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel.

“Look, rules are rules and you have to follow them,” Williams said in response to the news. “It would be great, but being an introvert, I don’t necessarily need to go to this party. I've been through it, I'm on the other side. Everything is fine.”

Talking to NME about the film, Williams reflected upon seeing his life story portrayed in the film: “Tears. And it works. And grief. And healing. And ego. And: ‘Look what happened to me!’ It just depends on which version of me shows up on that particular day—and how much sleep I get.

“At the moment I just want to take it all into consideration. I want to drink up every moment I can because now I'm in a place where I can enjoy life. I haven't been able to enjoy life for so long. And I feel like I'm lucky again and I get another piece of the apple.”

In other Robbie Williams news, the singer recently revealed to NME that he is working on a new album, which will include collaborations with Glenn Hughes and Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi.

Rumors about a new Robbie Williams album have been circulating for some time: back in September, the artist told fans that a new record was on the way. When the new album arrives, it will be his 13th solo album and first full-length album since 2019’s The Christmas Present.