One of the world’s biggest pop stars has just had a blockbuster biopic made about his life, and Griffith University Musical Theatre alumnus Liam Head was there for the ride.
Starring as Robbie William’s Take That bandmate Howard Donald, this was the 23-year-old’s first foray into feature films, having already played a collection of on-stage roles since graduating, including Fiyero in the current Australian season of Wicked.
Better Man tells the story of Robbie Williams’ meteoric rise to success and fame, his dramatic fall from grace, and then remarkable resurgence, with Mr Head saying it was a warts-and-all type of story.
“People are going to absolutely love this film because we haven’t held any punches—we really went the whole hog, which is, I think, a real service to the story,” he said.
“It’s been rated as the best biopic of all time, which is phenomenal, and to have played a part in it just feels truly incredible.”
With the lead character portraying Robbie Williams as a monkey, it was a whole new experience for Mr Head to be working alongside his co-star in a motion capture suit, and even seeing himself alongside the monkey in the movie for the first time.
“It could have been really tough if it was anyone but Johnno Davies who played Robbie, but Jonno is world-class and his performance was just breathtaking,” Mr Head said.
“The performance capture was done by the team at Wētā FX, who did Avatar and Planet of the Apes, and they captured even the smallest details including what his eyes did underneath the eyelids, so everything you see is still Jonno and it’s simply divine.”
While Mr Head has just wrapped up the media circuit for Better Man, he is now back in Australia and fronting the Wicked stage as Fiyero alongside fellow Griffith alumni Courtney Monsma, Emily Monsma and Jordan Malone.
Talent even runs in the family, with Liam’s older brother Jackson Head also graduating from Griffith’s musical theatre program two years earlier, with the pair often enjoying either sharing the stage, performing lead roles in different shows concurrently, or running their own production company, The Head Bros.
It is a testament to how well the Bachelor of Musical Theatre program prepares students for a career in the performing arts, with Mr Head saying the teachings, mentorship and life advice he received during his degree made him the well-rounded performer he is today.
“It’s pretty common for everyone from Griffith Uni to walk away going ‘wow, that was a great time’,” he said.
“Great education, great learning, great faculty and now world class facility as well.
“We also came out with some very close-knit friendships that I can’t see going away anytime soon.
“I’m very, very grateful, and very blessed.”
