Robin Williamshad a long-established Hollywood career, and became known for a variety of movies, includingDead Poets SocietyandPatch Adams. Some of his most celebrated roles are from comedies (The BirdcageandMrs. Doubtfire), andhis knack for humor, along with a charismatic personality, made him beloved by many.Other films, whether blockbusters and/or critical hits, have includedThe Fisher King,Jumanji,Night at the Museum, and Disney’sAladdin, whereWilliams famously portrayed Genie, a character now immortalized in popular culture.
Williams starred in many more projects, some underperforming, includingFather’s DayandDeath to Smoochy, the latter only generating $8 million. Still,he is often considered among the best parts of any movie he was in, andWilliams' film legacyremains strong as audiences continue to enjoy his work across all genres. When it comes to science fiction, for example, he appeared inFlubber,A.I. Artificial Intelligence,The Final Cut, and 2005’sRobots, although each ranged in commercial success and viewer reception.
VFX Artists Break Down Robin Williams' Bicentennial Man
The Underrated Sci-Fi Movie Features Impressive Effects
Now, one of Williams’ underrated sci-fi dramas,Bicentennial Man, is earning rave reviews from VFX artists, 25 years after its original release. The movie sees Andrew, an android initially bought by the Martin family, begin exhibiting thoughts and other features uncommon for robots. Along with Williams, the cast ofBicentennial Manincludes Sam Neill, Wendy Crewson, Oliver Platt, Embeth Davidtz, Kiersten Warren, and John Michael Higgins. The film premiered in 1999 andhad an underwhelming theatrical run, making $87 million globally.
Bicentennial Manreceived mostly negative reviews and currently holds a score of 37% on Rotten Tomatoes.
DuringCorridor Crew’s recent “VFX Artists React to Bad & Great CGi” video, a scene fromBicentennial Manwas evaluated. Praising the moment where Andrew gets his new head attached, Sam explained that Williams and his co-star would have shot their own parts. For Williams’,there was a model head and he himself was “tracked.”Upon connecting the head, the footage changed to Williams. Read Sam’s comment below:
Basically, Robin Williams and the scientist character are filmed separately and Robin Williams himself is filmed in two separate setups. Once for the end of this shot, where he walks out of frame, and once for the floating head section. This is a face being tracked onto a dummy head… And so, when he’s walking up here and placing the head on the body, it’s actually a full takeover. So we’re going to go from the projection map tracked face on the dummy head, and we’re going to morph into Robin Williams' real head here.
Sam added that while the hole was practical and fake,Andrew’s body in that scene was Williams’, since he eventually had to move. Because of that, the other actor would be staring at an empty mark once the false head was attached. Wren then noted the practical elements of the film, sharing: “This is like the one shot in the whole movie that really just stands out as like a, ‘wait, how is this so dang good?’” Read more of Sam’s explanation below:
Yeah, everything below the neckline is a freeze frame of Robin’s body and the reason this has to be a comped frame of the body is because this is actually going to be Robin Williams’ actual body from when he walks off later.
Our Take On The Bicentennial Man VFX
A Key Component In Making The Robots So Memorable
The impressive effects inBicentennial Man, along withWilliams’ performance, help make Andrew a memorable robot character, and it’s interesting to learn more about what went into bringing him to life. As Andrew develops more human qualities, that scene in particular becomes a significant part of the movie, as he had previously gained a sense of autonomy, but now was making a new appearance. Even in their original metal forms, the effects for Andrew and other robots throughout the film continue to hold up many years later.
Bicentennial Man
Cast
Bicentennial Man is a science fiction film directed by Chris Columbus, starring Robin Williams as Andrew, an android who embarks on a journey to become more human. Spanning two centuries, the film explores themes of humanity, identity, and the evolving relationship between humans and artificial intelligence. Sam Neill and Embeth Davidtz co-star, with the story adapted from Isaac Asimov’s novella and subsequent novel, The Positronic Man.
