MOVIE NEWS – The Mr Robot and Until Dawn actor changes into Freddie Mercury in a new Bohemian Rhapsody featurette.

Rami Malek explains all the process that he went through to channel the energy of rock music’s most legendary front man. As you might have guessed already, it wasn’t as easy at all to find some similar clothing and just copy some of Mercury’s moves from watching YouTube. Malek explained that they spent more than two days on the wardrobe alone, trying on some of Mercury’s craziest costumes, some of which had 4″ heels. Still, as Malek says, “When you dress as Freddie, it makes every day feel like it’s going to be a good time.”

Besides the intense wardrobe days, Rami Malek also trained under choreographers to try and get close to what Freddie Mercury pulled off on stage for Bohemian Rhapsody. However, it soon became apparent to Malek that the choreography on its own was not going to help him become Mercury. He explained in the featurette:

“You don’t want to mimic Freddie; you want to be able to understand why he did what he did. I needed a movement coach.”

Malek trained with a movement coach who not only helped the actor get all of the musician’s microphone and stage moves down but also his off-stage mannerisms. Even looking at the brief promotional materials, one can easily see that Malek has transformed into Freddie Mercury.

To get the look and feel of Freddie Mercury and the rest of the band, the production of Bohemian Rhapsody had access to the band’s official archivist, Greg Brooks. Brooks provided never-before-seen photographs, actual costumes, memorabilia, and instruments to make sure that everything was correct. The creative team was obsessed with getting everything correct for the era, all the way down to getting the right jeans from the right year to the cigarettes that the band smoked.

Greg Brooks provided an invaluable peek behind the curtain at what it was like to be in Queen without actually being in the band. Rami Malek was able to read Freddie Mercury‘s handwritten notes and saw his belongings in the flesh. As Malek states in the Bohemian Rhapsody featurette, one can’t just put on the clothing and move like Mercury to portray him. Malek had to find his own way to channel the front man, which didn’t cease when the cameras stopped running.

Bohemian Rhapsody opens November 3rd, which is only a few short weeks away. Queen fans from all over the world will finally get to see the band’s story told on the big screen and watched Rami Malek channel the incomparable Freddie Mercury. Malek’s voice will even be heard in the movie, sometimes solo, and other times blended with Mercury’s. Let’s hope all of that hard work and strife behind-the-scenes pushed the film where it needed to go. While we wait to find out, you can check out the Bohemian Rhapsody featurette below, thanks to the 20th Century Fox YouTube channel.