The rise and fall of BlackBerry – and why director thinks world may be ready for its return
With the latest iPhone now in people’s hands and Google’s annual Android flagship not far behind, it’s a pertinent time to release a film about the once iconic device that paved the way for both.
BlackBerry hasn’t appeared alongside them on shop shelves for years, and any remaining devices were effectively killed off last January when the company behind them ceased support.
It was an undignified end for a gadget that changed the world, one that became not just ubiquitous with boardrooms and offices (including a certain oval-shaped one), but a true fashion statement.
Thrusting it back into the spotlight in 2023 is director Matt Johnson, who hails not far from BlackBerry’s Ontario HQ.
And yet, against all odds, he says he has no history with the world’s first smartphone whatsoever.
“The timeline of the product was one of the main things I was interested in,” the 37-year-old says.
“A film about the late 90s/early 2000s shift from a more analogue world to a more digital world.
“That’s when I was quite young and a great opportunity to explore that cultural space, all where I grew up.”
Research In Motion was based in Waterloo, Ontario
‘Hacker-style’ nerds who changed the world
BlackBerry (the film, not the product) picks up in 1996 at tech firm Research In Motion.
At the time, its ragtag crew of engineers are unaware they’re working on perhaps their country’s most famous export since maple syrup.
Mike Lazaridis (Jay Baruchel) and friend Douglas Fregin (Johnson) suspect their “PocketLink” idea for a phone that does email is good, but lack the business sense to turn concept into reality.
BlackBerry’s president Mike Lazaridis and (below) in the film, played by Jay Baruchel
Pic: National Amusements/Piece Of Magic Entertainment
Johnson says they were interested in solving practical problems, but had “no vision of a cultural revolution”.
Enter the ruthless and opportunistic Jim Balsillie (Glenn Howerton), who sees enough potential in the pitch to brute force his way into becoming co-CEO and set up a pitch with the US telecoms giant that would become Verizon.
BlackBerry’s co-CEO Jim Balsillie and (below) Glenn Howerton
Pic: National Amusements/Piece Of Magic Entertainment
The film, based on the book Losing The Signal, takes some liberties with the BlackBerry story – and the real players involved have said some portrayals are closer to satire.
Balsillie’s depicted as a hilariously foul-mouthed demon of the boardroom, while Lazaridis and Fregin lead a team of “almost hacker-style” nerds who love video games and office film nights.
What the film undoubtedly nails is the BlackBerry brand’s ascendancy to stardom.
The film presents the RIM team as a ragtag crew, including Lazaridis (left) and Fregin (in headband). Pic: National Amusements/Piece Of Magic Entertainment
Cracking the market
The first device in 1999 had email and two-way paging, with a keyboard and modest monochrome display.
By 2002, calls, texts, and internet browsing were features of an increasingly popular product with business types.
But the game-changing launch of BlackBerry Messenger in 2005 took it truly mainstream, bringing WhatsApp-style encrypted messaging we now all take for granted.
The world’s addiction to typing on the go saw “CrackBerry” named Webster’s Dictionary’s word of 2006.
It was the phone of choice for millions of people, endorsed by celebrities and even the US president.
At its peak, BlackBerry controlled almost half of the global smartphone market.
Anyone who’s anyone wanted a BlackBerry
Apple makes its move
But 2007 heralded the iPhone – and the world would be about to change all over again.
Steve Jobs ruthlessly mocked the BlackBerry’s reliance on a keyboard during the grand unveiling, as observers swooned over the large multitouch display in his hand.
For many analysts, it marked the beginning of the end for BlackBerry.
Steve Jobs unveils the iPhone. Pic: AP
For Johnson, it wasn’t necessarily the iPhone itself that killed the BlackBerry – but its creators’ response to it.
It saw the company hastily assemble a Frankenstein-like competitor which tried to combine a touchscreen with the satisfying clicks of a physical keyboard.
“It’s a keyboard… on a screen… on a keyboard,” is how Baruchel’s Lazaridis pitches it to his engineers, tragically unconvincingly.
The resulting BlackBerry Storm, released in 2008, was a disaster.
Issues with the new touchscreen, which had one enormous button underneath, saw Verizon have to replace all one million devices it sold and claim $500m in losses.
The BlackBerry Storm was a direct attempt to cash in on the excitement around the iPhone
‘How do you do, fellow kids?’
It put the Canadian company on the back foot, and left its executives grappling with an identity crisis as Apple’s trendsetter went from strength to strength.
BlackBerry still had its loyal users, with one Barack Obama among those happily using them for years after.
The company even welcomed Queen Elizabeth II for a visit to its headquarters in 2010.
But by then it was clear the company’s direction had become muddled, and the masses and phone carriers were batting their eyelids in the iPhone’s direction.
BlackBerry had gone from status symbol to “how do you do, fellow kids?” in the blink of an eye
‘How does one text Philip?’
Blind revolutionaries
Johnson sees BlackBerry’s downfall as a cautionary tale, but also something of a tragic one.
“They set up the scaffolding for a revolution, but then didn’t realise one was about to happen,” he says.
“It wasn’t that the iPhone was just a better product,” says Johnson.
“It had more to do with the vision of a company like Apple compared to Reality In Motion.
“People say they’re part of the ‘Apple ecosystem’ – the brand means more than the products.
“BlackBerry just did not do that and weren’t interested in that.
“And by the end, those original engineers end up so disillusioned and alienated from the thing they built, I don’t think they even believe they built it.”
The moment the iPhone is announced as portrayed in the film. Pic: National Amusements/Piece Of Magic Entertainment
BlackBerry kept chipping away at iPhone-style touchscreen devices, but found itself swimming against a tide made even stronger by the popularity of Android.
In 2016, the firm gave up making phones and transitioned to being a software security business, licensing out the BlackBerry name for other manufacturers to give it a shot.
The last hurrah was 2018’s BlackBerry KEY2 LE from China’s TCL, an awkwardly assembled jack of all trades that unceremoniously stuck a keyboard at the foot of a touchscreen.
It could hardly have been further away from Lazaridis’s original “texts, calls, email” vision for a phone, one which Johnson thinks might yet make a significant return.
It was the future once…
Nostalgia-driven “dumb phones” from Nokia have seen a resurgence as users seek a detox from social media, while newcomers like the Light Phone proudly boast of offering nothing but texts and calls.
“I think if BlackBerry had reverted to that philosophy, they might’ve found success,” he says.
What’s certain is that no company can afford to rest on its laurels in the constant churn of Silicon Valley.
The modern smartphone may be lacking for innovation, but as BlackBerry and iPhone both proved, the future can emerge in no time at all.
BlackBerry releases in UK and Irish cinemas on 6 October.
Entertainment
I Swear: The film fighting back against abuse and ‘cheap laughs’ at Tourette’s expense
When John Davidson was 10 years old, he experienced his first symptoms of Tourette syndrome – small facial tics and eye blinking.
By the time he was 13, the neurological condition was causing full-body movements so extreme he compares himself with the young heroine in horror film The Exorcist.
John tells Sky News: “There’s a scene where the girl’s on the bed and her whole body’s twitching about and screaming. That’s almost what it felt like. My tics became so extreme that I was hurting myself. I was pulling muscles. I was tired all the time.
“I would break down and cry so many times in a day because I was totally out of control. Something had completely taken over my mind and my body.”
John Davidson’s life story has been made into a film, with Robert Aramayo in the lead role. Pic: StudioCanal
Growing up in Galashiels in the Scottish Borders, John was repeatedly told his symptoms were in his head – or worse, intentional – when a chance meeting with a visiting junior doctor while in hospital led to a diagnosis.
Largely unheard of in the 1980s, today, high-profile figures including Scottish musician Lewis Capaldi and US star Billie Eilish have publicly spoken about living with Tourette’s.
Affecting more than 300,000 people in Britain, it’s more common than many think. One schoolchild in every hundred is estimated to be affected by the syndrome, according to NHS England.
While severity can range, there is currently no cure.
And while the University of Nottingham is working on a device which uses electrical pulses to suppress tic urges, the wristband – called Neupulse – is currently awaiting full medical approval.
John Davidson MBE, with his black Labrador Suki. Pic: StudioCanal
‘Medication turned me into a zombie’
Treated with drugs as a child, John suffered devastating side-effects: “Anti-psychotic medications turned me into a zombie. I’ve got probably about a two-year period in my teens where I have no real proper memories.”
Frustrated by the lack of support available to him growing up, John is now a Tourette syndrome campaigner, recognised for his work with an MBE.
But even that came with challenges unique to his condition. At the 2019 ceremony at Holyrood Palace, when collecting his award, John shouted “F*** the Queen” at Elizabeth II.
He says: “It was horrific for me. It was like the last thing I ever wanted to have to shout. And I think that’s the nature of the coprolalia, part of the condition, where it’s the worst possible thing you could say in that situation.”
Affecting a minority of the Tourette’s population, coprolalia is the involuntary utterance of socially inappropriate words or phrases.
While less common, it’s the feature of Tourette’s most often portrayed in the media.
John goes on: “It came as much of a shock to me as to everyone else, you know? But I’m the one in the moment having to deal with those emotions and feelings of wanting the ground to swallow me up. [Thinking] I don’t want to be here any more.”
Maxine Peake also stars in the film. Pic: StudioCanal
‘Living with it is absolutely awful’
Now, in a bid to tackle the stereotype, a film is being made about John’s life based on his 2025 memoir, with Game Of Thrones star Robert Aramayo playing the lead role.
No stranger to media exposure himself, John has appeared in numerous documentaries over the years, following on from the groundbreaking 1989 documentary about his life, John’s Not Mad. But it hasn’t always been a positive experience.
John says: “Every time they make a documentary, they make such a thing about the swearing part, which then stigmatises the condition because people are then left to assume that everyone with Tourette’s swears and shouts obscenities.”
In reality, coprolalia is not typical of the condition and only affects around one in 10 people with Tourette’s.
John acknowledges there is a comedic element to this: “When people think of uncontrollably swearing like that, it’s funny. ‘Oh my God’, you know, ‘shock, horror’. But for the one living with it, it’s absolutely awful.”
Scottish actor Peter Mullan with Robert Aramayo. Pic: StudioCanal
‘Let’s have sex!’
It’s a sentiment the film’s director echoes.
Kirk Jones first met John in 2022. Meeting him at his house to discuss the potential of making the film, John opened the door and, after inviting him in, shouted in his face: “Let’s have sex!”
His first introduction to John’s verbal ticks, the director admits it was a “steep learning curve”.
He tells Sky News: “There’s something about Tourette’s, which I don’t think has made it a very friendly or accessible condition. I think that’s down to the fact that people who have coprolalia come across as being aggressive or argumentative or difficult or upsetting people, and I think that’s unfair. They need as much support as anyone else.”
The director says it took him some time to gain John’s trust, showing he wanted to do more than just revisit tired stereotypes.
He says: “The Tourette’s community had been kind of abused in the past. They’ve been invited to appear on TV shows or radio or be in newspaper articles, under the guise of helping people to understand Tourette’s more. But what the TV channel or the radio show really wanted was just a cheap laugh.
“When I first met John and started talking about the idea of the film, he was understandably suspicious.”
Handing over some creative control, John is also an executive producer on the film.
Actor Francesco Piacentini-Smith as Murray. Pic: StudioCanal
‘When you laugh, it breaks the ice’
Now, at 54, and having lived with the condition for over 40 years, John believes people are becoming more tolerant of Tourette’s, but would love to see further acceptance.
“It’s about not being shocked. It’s not about being dead serious with a straight face. Feel free to laugh, because when you laugh, it breaks the ice.
“I wish people had the confidence to approach people with Tourette’s and just deal with it as if it was an everyday thing.”
The director, too, hopes the film will have a real-world impact and open people’s eyes to the reality of the condition.
He says: “I hope this film can play a small part in starting to refocus people’s attention on helping and supporting people rather than just laughing or mocking.”
I Swear is in UK and Irish cinemas from Friday 10 October.
Anyone looking for support or information about Tourette syndrome can access resources at Tourettes Action or Tourette Scotland for those living in Scotland.
Dolly Parton has declared she “ain’t dead yet” after her sister raised concerns about the singer’s health by asking people to pray for her.
“There are just a lot of rumours flying around. But I figured if you heard it from me, you’d know that I was okay,” the 79-year-old singer said in a new two-minute video posted on social media.
“I’m not ready to die yet. I don’t think God is through with me. And I ain’t done working,” she added.
In the footage, captioned “I ain’t dead yet!”, the 9 to 5 singer is seen on a set speaking directly to the camera.
On Tuesday, a Facebook post shared by her sister Freida Parton escalated concerns around Parton’s health when she wrote that she had been “up all night praying for my sister, Dolly”.
Hours later, Freida Parton followed up with a clarification. “I want to clear something up. I didn’t mean to scare anyone or make it sound so serious when asking for prayers for Dolly,” she wrote.
“She’s been a little under the weather, and I simply asked for prayers because I believe so strongly in the power of prayer.”
Dolly Parton during a concert in Nashville, Tennessee, in March. Pic: AP
Last month, Parton postponed her first Las Vegas residency in 32 years, citing “health challenges”.
She was scheduled to perform six shows at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in December. The dates have been moved to next September
Parton offered her own clarification about her health condition in Wednesday’s video.
Read more from Sky News:
Dame Jilly Cooper dies after fall
Man guilty of stalking Myleene Klass
“Everyone thinks that I am sicker than I am. Do I look sick to you? I’m working hard here! Anyway, I wanted to put everybody’s mind at ease, those of you who seem to be real concerned, which I appreciate,” she continued.
“And I appreciate your prayers because I’m a person of faith. I can always use the prayers for anything and everything.”
Dolly Parton performs with the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders in 2023. Pic: Reuters
She also referenced her late husband of nearly 60 years Carl Dean who died earlier this year at the age of 82.
“I want you to know that I’m OK. I’ve got some problems as I’ve mentioned. Back when my husband Carl was very sick, that was for a long time, and then when he passed, I didn’t take care of myself. So I let a lot of things go that I should’ve been taking care of,” she said.
“So anyway, when I got around to it, the doctor said: ‘We need to take care of this. We need to take care of that.’ Nothing major, but I did have to cancel some things so I could be closer to home, closer to Vanderbilt, where I’m kind of having a few treatments here and there.”
And in true Parton fashion, she ended with a joke: “I wanted you to know that I’m not dying”.
Dolly Parton’s sister has said that the country singer is “going to be just fine” after worrying fans by asking for prayers.
Freida Parton had asked people for prayers for the Jolene and I Will Always Love You singer on Tuesday.
“Last night, I was up all night praying for my sister, Dolly. Many of you know she hasn’t been feeling her best lately,” Ms Parton wrote in a Facebook post.
“I truly believe in the power of prayer, and I have been [led] to ask all of the world that loves her to be prayer warriors and pray with me.
“She’s strong, she’s loved, and with all the prayers being lifted for her, I know in my heart she’s going to be just fine. Godspeed, my sissy Dolly. We all love you!”
Parton performs during her concert in Ijsselhallen in Zwolle, Netherlands, in 2007. Pic: AP
After shocked fans took to social media expressing worry about Parton’s health, her sister said in a second post on Wednesday: “I want to clear something up. I didn’t mean to scare anyone or make it sound so serious when asking for prayers for Dolly.
“She’s been a little under the weather, and I simply asked for prayers because I believe so strongly in the power of prayer. It was nothing more than a little sister asking for prayers for her big sister.”
It comes after Parton announced in September that she had to postpone her upcoming Las Vegas residency over “health challenges”.
Dolly Parton performs with the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders in 2023. Pic: Reuters
“As many of you know, I have been dealing with some health challenges, and my doctors tell me that I must have a few procedures,” the singer said at the time.
“As I joked with them, it must be time for my 100,000-mile check-up, although it’s not the usual trip to see my plastic surgeon!”
Read more from Sky News:
Author Dame Jilly Cooper dies after fall
Man, 61, found guilty of stalking Myleene Klass
Parton said she was postponing the shows because she is “not going to be able to rehearse and put together the show that I want you to see. You pay good money to see me perform, and I want to be at my best for you”.
The country star was set to perform six shows at Caesars Palace in December, but her performance dates have been moved to September 2026.
“Don’t worry about me quittin’ the business because God hasn’t said anything about stopping yet,” Parton said as she announced the postponement of her shows. “But I believe he is telling me to slow down right now so I can be ready for more big adventures with all of you.”
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports2 years agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports3 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Sports3 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment1 year agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024