Claim: David Bowie was a person who acted.

The Man Who Fell to Earth is a 1976 British science fiction drama film directed by Nicolas Roeg and written by Paul Mayersberg , based on Walter Tevis ' 1963 novel of the same name , about an extraterrestrial who crash lands on Earth seeking a way to ship water to his planet , which is suffering from a severe drought . The film maintains a strong cult following for its use of surreal imagery and its performances by David Bowie -LRB- in his first starring film role -RRB- , Candy Clark , and Hollywood veteran Rip Torn . The same novel was later remade as a less successful 1987 television adaptation .   The film was produced by Michael Deeley and Barry Spikings , who reunited two years later to work on The Deer Hunter .