How did Bill Nighy recreate The Man Who Fell to Earth?
by Jaskiran Kaur | Sat, 23 Apr 2022 17:48:12 GMT
The Man Who Fell To Earth stars Bill Nighy & Jimmi Simpson in the adaption of the original film; Credits: IMDB

Bill Nighy and Jimmi Simpson have once again brought forward the masterpiece that was The Man Who Fell To Earth by David Bowie. 

Based on the sci-fi novel by Walter Tevis, The Man Who Fell to Earth will be an adaptation of the original book and film along with a continuation of the story. The original film starred the legendary David Bowie and told the tale of an alien, Thomas Newton, who has arrived on Earth. 

The alien is visiting Earth in search of water for his own planet. While the story is exceptional in many ways, the alien is not successful in retrieving water for his planet, contrary to the popular happy ending films of the time. 

Now, another alien has made his way to Earth in the hope of succeeding his predecessor and finding water for his home planet. The new alien Faraday is played by Chiwetel Ejiofor known for his work in Doctor Strange in The Multiverse of Madness. 

Along with fulfilling the previous mission, Faraday is also tasked with finding a scientist, Justin Falls. Played by Naomie Harris from No Time to Die, Falls could help Faraday with helping save his home planet with all the work that he has done. 

Bowie's role as the phenomenal predecessor alien will be played by Bill Nighy from Emma. Surviving on earth since his first visit to the planet, the alien has become older and even more resolute as compared to the Newton seen in the original film. 

Meant to be the mentor of Faraday in his task, Newton is expected to play an exceptional role in the success of the second alien's mission, if at all. The duo might face some resistance to their plans from Agent Spencer Clay. 

Agent Clay is played by Jimmi Simpson from Pachinko. The character is set on finding the aliens, which makes him pretty ruthless as he turns ignorant to everything else but his mission. 

Both Nighy and Simpson recently talked about their experience filming the movie, along with their take on the original 1976 film by Nicolas Roeg and how they have taken the brilliance of David Bowie and explored it further. 

Bill Nighy revealed that he was quite young when the original film was released and was an instant hit in England. He has seen the film many times since its release and has always liked Nicolas Roeg's work on the direction, along with David Bowie's spectacular acting performance. 

The sci-fi production was one step ahead of all other cinematic experiences of the time and was phenomenal with its usage of an extraterrestrial trope as compared to the dull monotony of humane stories. It is fascinating to see how Newton reacts to common human amenities like televisions, motels, and alcohol. 

Jimmi Simpson saw the film for the first time in the 1990s when in a film school. While he liked the film, he admitted that he watched it only that one time. As the film does not give a proper closure or a sense of satisfaction to the viewer, the film did not click with him despite its magnificent sci-fi trope. 

But, when he received the offer for the film along with the script, he went to revisit the story of The Man Who Fell To Earth. This time the actor had lived life for a much longer time and his perception of the film took a complete u-turn. 

He admitted that a person's view on life faces drastic change from when they are 25 and when they are 45. He saw how difficult things can get for people and finally came to terms with the ending of the original movie. 

Hence, this time he appreciated the genius of David Bowie to a larger extent and now even vibes to the film's music. The film has shown the utter vulnerability of the character played by Bowie and how his portrayal is so much similar to being a child. In other terms, the character is so much like the actor himself. 

Simpson also learned about the novel on which the film is based only later on when he was headed to shoot the film and shared that he was instantly hooked to it when he read it. Reading the book made him understand the little nuances of the film in a better sense and find better context. 

Now, the film is set 45 years after the events in the original world and things have taken a lot of interesting turns. The latest adaptation of the book delves into a deeper understanding of humanity, what it means to be human and how our species has found happiness and joy in the littlest of things. 

The film is so much like the original movie, yet different characters are once again going through similar struggles. Even though alien, they too have a sense of humanity hanging over them as opposed to the original film by Roeg. 

Bill Nighy has done a great way working in the footsteps of Dabid Bowie as Newton. he shared that he felt enormous responsibility when he took over the role and being a fan of the actor he felt even more obliged to bring justice to the character. 

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