THE ONE AND ONLY

DUNCAN JONES’ LUCKY CHARM? A CHESNEY HAWKES POP ANTHEM IN EVERY FILM

1 MOON __ (2009)

Every morning space worker Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) wakes up to his alarm clock playing 1991 charttopper The One And Only. “I didn’t know Chesney when I chose it,” says Jones. “I just wanted the most annoyingly cheery song I could think of for Sam to wake up to every day, and when I thought of The One And Only, the added irony of the lyrics (Sam turns out to be a clone) made it feel like it was fated to be!”

2 SOURCE CODE __ (2011)

Train passenger Christina Warren (Michelle Monaghan) has the song as her ringtone. “It was the connecting thread with Moon: our protagonist not being ‘the one and only’,” says Jones. “But, after doing it twice, it kind of became its own thing, and more of a hidden maker’s mark on all my films.”

3 WARCRAFT __ (2016)

Jones upped the ante by casting Hawkes himself as a minstrel, who performs his hit in a tavern. Sadly, the scene was cut. “The cameo exists,” says Jones, “but only in the extra scenes on the Blu-ray. The whole editing process on Warcraft was an ugly affair. A lesson in studio filmmaking I will not forget.”

4 MUTE __ (2018)

Hawkes’ hit bounced back to appear on the soundtrack to Mute, which, for the first time since Moon, also features a score by Clint Mansell. “How much Chesney is in there?” teases Jones. “Just the right amount! You’ll have to listen very carefully.” DAMON WISE