I think it’s safe to say that the large majority of film fans consider School of Rock as a cinematic masterpiece, and that we have probably watched it more times than we would care to admit.

But one of the child stars in the 2003 flick doesn’t share the same sentiment, having admitted that they struggled to watch the movie back for a long time due to a heartbreaking reason.

Rivkah Reyes – who uses they/them pronouns – portrayed the bad-a** bass guitarist Katie in the comedy which encouraged us all to pick up an instrument.

In the movie, the Horace Green prep school pupil ditched their cello for something a bit cooler under Dewey Finn’s (Jack Black) instruction and rocked out alongside their classmates, which included the late Kevin Clark.

You might think that the cast members get all sentimental when they stick School of Rock on every now and again, looking back on their younger selves with pride and reliving all of their happy memories from the film set.

But for Reyes, that hasn’t always been the case.

During an appearance on the Sleepover Cinema podcast in October 2022, they told hosts Hannah and Audrey Leach that although being in such an iconic film is every actor’s dream, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for them.

Rivkah Reyes pictured alongside Jack Black in the hit 2003 comedy (Paramount Pictures)

The 32-year-old from Chicago explained that the gang of talented school kids had all gotten together to watch it for the first time after filming wrapped.

Reyes said: “It was just us watching it and we were like, ‘This is so cool!’ We just went in the middle of the day while we were practicing for some of our TV promo – like Jay Leno, talk show gigs.

“They would have us come on, they’d have Jack come on and do an interview and then they would bring us out and we would do the song from the movie on the show, which was so cool.

“We did that a bunch and it was so fun, but at one point, they took us to go see it and it was magical.”

But after watching it ‘over and over and over again’ at countless screenings, premieres, film festivals, and events across the world, the novelty of being a film star soon began to wear off for Reyes.

The 32-year-old revealed watching School of Rock back made them feel self-conscious (Christopher Polk/Variety via Getty Images)

The Merry Gentlemen actor went on to reveal that their experience of showbiz was a ‘little different’ to that of their co-stars.

“I have severe anxiety,” Reyes said. “Ever since I was a little kid I have had like really like negative, spiralling thoughts.

“So I would be watching it and just looking at myself like, ‘Why are you doing that with your face?’ I was very highly critical of myself and also like you know sitting next to my mom watching me, and then like, yeah…

“I got highly critical of myself and it got really weird. I was like self-conscious about everything.”

Reyes said they ‘found something new to be self-conscious about’ each time they saw School of Rock, seeing them pick apart their appearance.

They continued: “Whether it was something I did with my face, or my teeth, or my belly, or being the tallest girl, or being ‘the quiet one’. Or having some of my lines cut, or having my bass solo cut or whatever.

“I started to get that inner saboteur really badly,” Reyes went on. “And of course, that was reflected by the kids who were mean to me at school.”

However, Reyes said they think they would be able to see the film through a new set of eyes these days – and despite their mixed emotions, they still look back on their School of Rock experience very fondly.

The actor added: “It’s like a whole new movie, it’s like a family reunion video, right?

“My memories attached to the process of filming are mostly positive, and my memories about the press junkets and all of that were really fun, because I was being pulled out of school to like be famous, to be interviewed and meet the Olsen twins!

“Yeah…it’s complex, but I should give it another watch.”

You definitely should, Reyes.

Warning: This article contains discussion of suicide which some readers may find distressing.

A new documentary focusing on the life of Avicii has touched on some unknown details about the DJ in the final days before his passing.

Tim Bergling, better known as Avicii, burst onto the music scene in 2011 with his hit, ‘Levels’, before going on to release a number of successful tunes during the 2010s, such as ‘Wake Me Up’ and ‘The Nights’.

Sadly, the 28-year-old struggled with mental health issues and tragically took his own life in 2018.

But now, new details have emerged about the last few days before Avicii’s death as a documentary on his life premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival over the summer.

Avicii was a very private man, despite his public status (Brian Killian/WireImage)

The Swedish artist, who would have turned 35 on 8 September, was a very private person, so an insightful documentary looking back at his life will likely capture the attention of fans across the globe.

The film, Avicii: I’m Tim, features the artist himself giving a narration taken from a past interview about his career, as well as ‘never-before-seen tour footage and behind-the-scenes glimpses of his creative process’.

According to the synopsis, it ‘honours his brilliant and peaceful nature, highlighting the impact of his innovative music that blended genres and pushed boundaries’.

The documentary features narration from the artist himself (Kevin Mazur/WireImage)

What can viewers expect?

Throughout the documentary, Avicii admitted to suffering from anxiety, saying that he was ‘killing’ himself with his non-stop touring schedule.

Jesse Waits, the managing partner of a Las Vegas nightclub that was close to the artist, told filmmakers: “I realised he was taking painkillers.

“I grew up with a family that did drugs and I saw when people do opiates their eyes change. The pin, the little black parts of their eyes.

“His eyes were wide open like a zombie, he was not there. At the dinner, his demeanour changed and his eyes dilated.

“That changed everything, those pills change how you act and how you feel. You wake up feeling like s**t and have to have another one to feel good.

“For him it was to suppress his anxiety but it just created more anxiety.”

I’m Tim, directed by Henrik Burman, details where Avicii grew up in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, and was so shielded from the outside world that he spent most of his first 19 years in a five-block radius, which included his school.

Avicii was just 28 years old when he died in 2018 (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Who features in the documentary?

As well as Avicii himself in archival footage, the film also features interviews with his family and friends, and his close peers within the music industry such as Coldplay’s Chris Martin and American musician Nile Rogers.

They also emphasised the toll that his touring took on him, and the impacts of becoming famous before the age of 20.

Avicii’s schedule would often mean he played gigs in two cities in one night, and performed more than 800 shows in six years.

When will the documentary be released?

Despite the film premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival on 9 June, there has currently been no confirmation of when the documentary will be released more widely.

But this isn’t the first film on Avicii’s life and legacy – with Avicii: True Stories making its debut in 2017.

If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, please don’t suffer alone. Call Samaritans for free on their anonymous 24-hour phone line on 116 123.

The School of Rock star who tragically died in a car accident was said to have helped come up with film’s ending.

The hit 2003 film follows overly enthusiastic guitarist Dewey Finn (Jack Black) who gets thrown out of his band and is, all of a sudden, in desperate need of work.

After using his friend’s identity as a substitute music teacher at a private school, he teaches his students how to rock.

The pretend-teacher forms a band with his class of students and trains them up to perform at the Battle of the Bands competition.

Child actor Kevin Clark was best known for his role as band member Freddy, an epic drum player.

Donald Weber/Getty Images

Sadly in 2021, Clark was fatally hit by a car while on his bike and died aged 32.

He was struck by a driver on 26 May, 2021, while cycling in Avondale, Chicago.

His band, Dreadwolf, shared a tribute from another group called Blind Adam and the Federal League, who wrote: “The Chicago music scene lost a wonderful, big hearted dude today.

“There is so much to say and I don’t even know where to begin but we are better for having known @kev_beats. I’m glad we got to play one last show with you before the pandemic, we love you very much!

“Condolences to our Chicago punk rock brothers @dreadwolfband. May the memory of Kevin Clark live on forever!”

Clark’s talent wasn’t limited to just acting as his School of Rock co-star Rivkah Reyes (who played bass guitarist Katie) even credits him for coming up with the ending.

Paramount

In a TikTok video in 2021, they explained: “At one of our earlier table reads, the ending wasn’t landing. We tried one version of it where we win, we tried another version of it where we lose and that’s it, and it just wasn’t hitting.

“And the team was like ‘What do we do about this ending?’ and Kevin is just like, ‘It would be cool if we lost and then the audience started cheering School of Rock! School of Rock! And then they bring us out for an encore.

“So this guy at 13 years old wrote the ending of School of Rock.”

At the time of Clark’s death, his co-star Jack Black was one of the first to pay tribute, writing: “Devastating news. Kevin is gone.

“Way too soon. Beautiful soul. So many great memories. Heartbroken. Sending love to his family and the whole School of Rock community.”

His mum, Allison Clark, said: “He loved music. He’s just a raw talent. He’s got a heart of gold.”

Even in the face of adversity, Sir Billy Connolly is still a barrel of laughs.

The comedy king might have been battling Parkinson’s disease for the last decade, but he still hasn’t lost his sense of humour as he refuses to let his condition ‘dictate who he is’.

He still reckons that laughter is the best medicine in life, seeing him joke that his countless appearances on the late Michael Parkinson‘s chat shows over the years might have contributed to his health struggles.

Speaking of what was running through his mind when medics informed him that he had the progressive disorder, Connolly joked: “I just thought, ‘I have got Parkinson’s. I wish he [Michael] had kept it to himself!'”

The funnyman explained he has found it ‘easy’ to poke fun at himself since he received the devastating news in 2013 – as the way it all went down sounds like something straight out of a comedy sketch.

The 81-year-old explained it was quite the ‘funny week’, which began with him tending to minor ailments before it ended up snowballing drastically.

Speaking recently to the Mirror, Connolly explained: “On the Monday, I had hearing aids. On the Tuesday I got pills for heart burn, which I have to take all the time, and on the Wednesday I got news that I had prostate cancer and Parkinson’s.

“The doctors told me on the phone, ‘Look we have had the results and it is cancer’.

“I said ‘Oh, nobody has ever said that to be me before’.”

So yeah, a bad week would be a generous way to describe what he went through in 2013.

The Scotsman explained that his wife of 35 years, Pamela Stephenson, was standing behind him at the time and immediately ‘gave him a cuddle’.

Sir Billy Connolly said his wife Pamela has been by his side since his diagnosis in 2013 (Luiz Rampelotto/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

“I was not unduly worried,” Connolly added.

He went on to get the all clear following his cancer diagnosis, however, his Parkinson’s continued to progress.

Connolly, from Glasgow, previously told how the brain disorder – which can cause unintended or uncontrollable movements, including shaking, stiffness, and difficulty with balance and coordination – was taking it’s toll on him.

In November last year, he revealed that ‘it gets stranger and more different‘ with each passing day, but said he has been able to find some solace from his struggles in drawing, painting and sculpturing.

Discussing what keeps him going and how he has adapted his mindset since, Sir Billy said: “You just confront it and make decisions based on it.

“You just have to think, ‘Don’t think you are being badly treated [in life] or you have the bad pick of the straws. You are one of millions’. Just behave yourself and relax.”

The comedian, 81, also opened up about his thoughts on death (Tristan Fewings/Getty Images)

And seen as though this is a bloke who’s already weighed up what amusing message he is having on his headstone, Connolly has obviously thought about his mortality a lot.

But he’s made peace with whatever is waiting on the other side in the last few years.

“You then realise it [death] is not the big thing everyone has made it out to be,” the Indecent Proposal actor continued.

“It is nothing. It is just a sudden nothing.”

Next Monday, the comedian will open up about his life in the new BBC series, In My Own Words.

Connolly will be the first celebrity guest to star in the new show and is set to discuss his ‘hellish’ childhood, his rise to fame and his friendship with the late and great Robin Williams.

He will also touch on his battle with boozing and his regrets about parenthood in the programme which airs on 2 September at 10.40pm on BBC One.