Michael Producer Promises Complete Story to Be Told
Lionsgate stunned theater owners in Las Vegas, with a poignant preview of Michael, the highly anticipated biopic about The King of Pop, Michael Jackson.
Producer Graham King disclosed that the project would feature around thirty tracks and hinted at its length, calling it “long” to tell the music story properly.
4 Hour biopic??? GOOD REVIEWS??? MICHAEL JACKSON??? pic.twitter.com/rUzcvtsfmX
— Don (@DonNeutron004) April 10, 2024
King also expressed that the biopic will address the controversies and scrutiny Jackson has faced throughout his life. “Behind the unrelenting scrutiny and the accusations and the blinding media spotlight, he was simply a man. A man who lived a very complicated life. The movie will delve into all of it,” he explained.
The trailer began with the Jackson 5 singing “ABC” on TV, then switched to Jackson playing “Man in the Mirror” live in the 1990s. Photographs also depicted a masked Jackson being pursued by photographers and admirers. Jackson’s real-life nephew Jaafar Jackson, who shares similarities with his uncle in dancing and stage presence, portrays Jackson.
Antoine Fuqua directs Michael, produced in association with Michael Jackson’s estate. This has been raising concerns about the extent to which abuse allegations would be addressed. However, King stated on Wednesday that objectivity is expected in a biopic.
In the teaser, Nia Long portrays Jackson’s mother, Katherine Jackson, who warns her brilliant son, “There might be some people who think you’re different, and that’s gonna make life a little harder for you. But you never were like anyone else. Michael, you have a very special light. So make that light shine onto the world.”
King also asserts, “When you mention his name, everyone has an opinion. For the first time, generations of moviegoers will come together to experience an inside look at the most prolific artist ever to have lived.”
Cinemacon audience reacts to the first glimpse of the upcoming Michael Jackson biopic, MICHAEL#MichaelMovie #CinemaCon2024 pic.twitter.com/49kEpC6Mie
— | MJ fan (@iamveronica777) April 11, 2024
Although the trailer premiered during the halfway point of the movie’s production, it is yet to be released to the rest of the public.
Other cast members include Coleman Domingo, who portrays Jackson’s father, Joe Jackson, and Miles Teller, John Branca, Jackson’s manager. The film is scheduled to release on April 18, 2025.
