Stardust: David Bowie fans react to ‘horrific' first biopic trailer featuring Johnny Flynn as Bowie

The first trailer for the forthcoming David Bowie biopic Stardust has dropped, giving audiences their first proper look at Johnny Flynn’s Bowie.

The Lovesick star and folk musician will play the iconic singer-songwriter around the era of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.

Marc Maron (GLOW) also stars in the film as Bowie’s publicist on a tour of the US, while Aaron Poole, Roanna Cocharne and Jena Malone round out the core cast.

Reaction to the trailer online was mixed, with many questioning the absence of Bowie’s music in the film.

“How anyone could make a trailer of a biopic of David Bowie and not use a single note of any of his songs is beyond me,” wrote one commenter.

“How in the world do you make a David Bowie film with no music, no emotion and no life or personality whatsoever? Who let this be made?”

“What's the point of this if it won't be a musical?” asked another.

Others were unsure about the casting of Flynn as Bowie, with one comparing his appearance to Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luther.

“You could search the globe for eternity and not find an actor who looks less like David Bowie than Johnny Flynn,” wrote one Twitter user.

“Johnny Flynn isn't actually a bad choice for Bowie. But this just doesn't look good. At all,” wrote someone else.

“They really did it. They managed to make David Bowie look mediocre,” quipped another commenter.

Many also pointed out that the late Bowie had expressed a desire to not have film made about his life, and that Stardust was made without approval from the late artist’s family and estate.

“This guy looks nothing like Bowie. It's just a guy wearing a Halloween costume of David Bowie. Seriously, there are plenty of other ways you could celebrate his legacy and not do a biopic,” wrote one social media user.

“Wow, this looks horrific and Bowie would actually be mortified,” wrote another.