POP sensation David Bowie, known for songs Space Oddity, Under Pressure and Heroes, wasn’t just able to sing – he turned his hand to acting too.
Most notably he appeared in fantasy film Labyrinth. Here’s everything you need to know about his time on screen.
1
Who was David Bowie’s character in Labyrinth?
David Bowie appeared in the 1986 film, Labyrinth where he played Jareth, the Goblin King.
Jareth is characterised as a mystifying and powerful king of the Goblins.
The basic plot of the movie, directed by Jim Henson, is that 13-year-old Sarah (played by Jennifer Connelly) brashly wishes for her baby brother to be taken away by the goblins who are in the book she is reading called the Labyrinth.
The Goblin King comes out the books and fulfils this wish.
Realising this is a big mistake, she tries to get her brother back but in order to do this, Jareth gives her 13 hours to complete his labyrinth first.
The film was not appreciated at the time of release and actually underperformed, reportedly only bringing in $12.9 million at the US box office, when it was budgeted at $25 million.
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Since then though, the film has gained a cult-like following by fans.
Brian Henson (the director’s son) also said at the time of filming, Bowie “so enthusiastically jumped on board this. He wrote all the songs himself, and they were great”.
What other films has David Bowie appeared in?
Alongside Labyrinth, Bowie appeared in a collection of other films.
As a main character, he played The Man Who Fell To Earth (1976), Just A Gigolo (1979) and Merry Christmas Mr Laurence (1983).
He had smaller roles such as an FBI agent in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992), as a vampire in The Hunger (1983) and as the shark in Yellowbeard (1983) amongst others.
He also appears as himself in comedy movies like Zoolander (2001) and Band Slam (2009).
He actually turned down an opportunity to be a Bond villain in A View To A Kill (1985).
What TV shows has David Bowie appeared in?
The icon also showed up in TV shows like the American 1990 sitcom Dream On, the BBC 2005 sitcom Extras with Ricky Gervais, and the 1997 horror anthology series The Hunger, which is based on the 1983 film thematically.
Bowie was also in a number of documentaries – his most recent is Moonage Daydream which was release in 2022, the documentary taking its title from the 1971 Bowie song.
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