Paramount’s ‘Better Man’ Becomes First Box Office Flop of 2025 Due to Ludicrously Huge Budget, Film Depicted British Singer Robbie Williams as a Chimpanzee

In 2025, Paramount Pictures began the year with a disappointing cinematic flop. Their grandiose and costly musical biography titled Better Man, focusing on the life of British music artist Robbie Williams, failed to impress at the box office.

Regardless of the intriguing concept of depicting Williams as a computer-generated chimp, which left many viewers and experts puzzled, the movie struggled to garner substantial interest within the country or abroad.

In the United States, the film had a lackluster start, earning just $1.1 million across 1,291 cinemas, placing it at number 13 on the domestic box office rankings. Similarly, in the UK where Robbie Williams is extremely well-known, Better Man could only muster a modest $1.9 million during its first weekend. The opening worldwide gross was a underwhelming $10 million.

In most cases, musical biopics don’t make headlines due to their usual modest budgets and minimal losses. However, this particular instance is exceptional.

As a dedicated cinephile, I’ve got to say, the financial landscape for the film “Better Man” is nothing short of mind-boggling. With an independently funded production budget of a whopping $110 million, and Paramount Pictures shelling out another $25 million for distribution rights, this movie is now heading towards a loss that could run into tens of millions. It’s a stark reality check for a project that many of us had hoped would at least pique some interest.

It appears there’s a significant concern about the movie, and it seems to stem from an unusual creative choice: portraying Williams as a computer-generated chimpanzee, while keeping the other characters human. The film’s impressive technical aspects might justify the high budget, but they may have also driven away potential viewers. Instead of a moving portrayal of the singer’s life, it seems the gimmick took center stage and was more than the audience could comfortably accept.

It’s noteworthy that both critics and initial viewers have expressed appreciation for the movie “Better Man”. On Rotten Tomatoes, it garnered an impressive 88% rating from critics, while on their popcorn meter, it received a staggering 94% approval from the audience. However, this critical acclaim hasn’t been mirrored in box office sales, suggesting a divide between the opinions of reviewers and the general public.

As a devoted cinephile, I can’t help but reflect on Paramount’s misadventure with “Better Man” – a tale that serves as a stark reminder of the perils associated with high-stakes creative risks and exorbitant budgets. Whilst the film’s technical prowess is undeniably impressive, its inability to resonate with audiences has left Paramount bearing the brunt of 2025’s first major box office bomb. The industry is currently left puzzled, pondering over how this intriguing chimp biopic could have missed its mark so significantly.

2025-01-14 19:54

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