2024’s Better Man has failed very badly at the box office, which makes the movie’s behind-the-scenes connection to another mᴀssive musical story all the more surprising. Better Man is a fantastical biopic depicting the life and career of British pop star Robbie Williams. Although the project has been well-received by critics, Better Man hasn’t managed to make back much at all of its $110 million budget. When compared with the director’s last movie before Better Man, his recent flop comes as a huge shock.
Williams sort of leads the Better Man cast. As well as taking on the movie’s narration duties, his CGI ape counterpart is a motion-captured character with a physical performance provided by Jonno Davies. Although Better Man isn’t really a contender to join the list of best biopics of all time, it does still have a certain charm and great moments that have unfortunately not been seen by as many people as intended – unlike its predecessor.
Michael Gracey’s Better Man Has Performed Far Worse Than The Greatest Showman
Hugh Jackman’s 2017 musical sensation was the last movie Gracey directed before Better Man
Despite its surprisingly high budget, Better Man has struggled to scrape by the $10 million mark at the box office, and it doesn’t look like it will be making it anywhere near breaking even. However, considering the movie is a comeback for the director of the hugely successful The Greatest Showman – Michael Gracey – Better Man‘s shortcomings become even more notable. The Greatest Showman had a budget of $84 million, which was far less than that of Better Man, and yet the musical P.T. Barnum biopic managed to rake in a staggering $469 million (via Box Office Mojo).
Despite a strong marketing campaign allowing news of Better Man‘s release to be known, far fewer people have gone to see it.
Even ignoring The Greatest Showman‘s financial triumphs, the Hugh Jackman-led feelgood movie became an international phenomenon, with buzz and enthusiasm surrounding the project lasting for a significant amount of time. Inversely, despite a strong marketing campaign allowing news of Better Man‘s release to be known, far fewer people have gone to see it, and those talking about it are doing so for all the wrong reasons.
Why Better Man Has Flopped So Spectacularly Compared To The Greatest Showman
Robbie Williams just doesn’t have the universal draw that Hugh Jackman has
Although Williams has enjoyed a stellar music career in parts of the world, primarily in the UK, he has never been able to make any kind of significant impact in the US. So, although it has scored well with critics, Better Man just doesn’t have a big enough name as its star to draw in American audiences – even the with weirdly creative edge of having Williams portrayed as a monkey. Even in the UK, he is probably past the peak of his fame, and as such, deciding to tell his story on such a major stage is even more confusing.
By comparison, The Greatest Showman has one of the biggest names in Hollywood leading the cast – Hugh Jackman. Although P.T. Barnum may not have been a household name at the time of the movie’s release, The Greatest Showman never claimed to be a particularly accurate account of the entertainer’s life. Instead, it’s more about watching Jackman and his fellow cast members strut their stuff to an award-winning original soundtrack. In short, Better Man had almost no remaining pieces of the formula that Gracey made sure he had in place for The Greatest Showman.
Source: Box Office Mojo
