{"id":537605,"date":"2026-04-18T10:32:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T10:32:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/537605\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T10:32:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T10:32:08","slug":"can-a-new-biopic-change-your-mind-about-michael-jackson-michael-jackson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/537605\/","title":{"rendered":"Can a new biopic change your mind about Michael Jackson? | Michael Jackson"},"content":{"rendered":"

In December 1993, Michael Jackson<\/a>\u2019s genitals were photographed<\/a> by the Santa Barbara county sheriff\u2019s department and the Los Angeles police department (LAPD). The pop music titan had been accused of sexually abusing Jordan Chandler, a 13-year-old boy who had accompanied Jackson on his Dangerous world tour and regularly shared a bed with the singer. Chandler had made a drawing of distinctive markings and blotches on Jackson\u2019s crotch which matched the photos, law enforcement said. \u201cNot just the genitalia,\u201d said deputy district attorney, Lauren Weis, in comments echoed by LAPD colleagues. \u201cBut a particular mark on the underside of his penis which the victim described.\u201d<\/p>\n

The incident is a well-known part of Jackson lore; in a live satellite feed broadcast shortly after, the singer branded the strip-search \u201cthe most humiliating ordeal of my life\u201d. The following month, Jackson paid a reported $25m to settle the case out of court. Jackson and his estate have always maintained his innocence in Chandler\u2019s claims and nearly a dozen other allegations of child molestation. \u201cAll these lies and all these people coming forward to get paid \u2026 ,\u201d he told<\/a> Diane Sawyer in a 1995 interview. \u201cJust lies. Lies, lies, lies.\u201d<\/p>\n

When a Michael Jackson biopic<\/a> arrives in theaters this month, it won\u2019t address the case at all. Not the LAPD\u2019s findings from the singer\u2019s strip-search, or any of the child sexual abuse allegations that Jackson faced. Instead, the $155m Jackson-estate-backed Lionsgate film is billed as a tribute to \u201cthe music, the legacy, the life\u201d of the pop titan, which traces his story from humble beginnings in Gary, Indiana, to finding early fame with the Jackson 5, before becoming a generational superstar with 1982\u2019s Thriller, which remains the bestselling album of all time<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Critics say that the film is also a play to rehabilitate his image. Jackson was acquitted of all child molestation charges in 2005, after a 14-week criminal trial<\/a>, but multiple allegations have surfaced since his death in 2009. The 2019 documentary Leaving Neverland<\/a> focused on two men who claimed Jackson abused them as children, and this February, four siblings from the Cascio family filed a lawsuit alleging they were sexually assaulted and trafficked by Jackson in over a decade of abuse. Jackson\u2019s lawyers and estate forcefully deny the new claims. \u201cThis lawsuit is a desperate money grab,\u201d Martin Singer, an attorney for Jackson\u2019s estate, said in a statement<\/a>. \u201cThis new court filing is a transparent forum-shopping tactic in their scheme to obtain hundreds of millions of dollars from Michael\u2019s estate and companies.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Jackson\u2019s streams and radio airplay briefly dipped<\/a> after Leaving Neverland\u2019s release, his legacy has never been bigger, with multiple musicals celebrating the singer on Broadway<\/a> and in the West End<\/a>, as well as a Cirque Du Soleil show centering on his music. When the trailer for Michael was released in November, it racked up 116.2m views in its first 24 hours to become the most-watched music biopic trailer of all time, and some prognosticators said that it could be the first film in the genre to cross $1bn worldwide.<\/p>\n

If it reaches that high-water mark, it will be a shocking turnaround for a production that has often seemed beleaguered, if not cursed. This month, Variety<\/a> and the New York Times<\/a> reported that the film was originally supposed to cover Chandler\u2019s molestation claims against Jackson, with most of its third act dedicated to the allegations and their impact on the singer. Those reports are true, Leaving Neverland director Dan Reed<\/a> told the Guardian \u2013 he read a leaked script in late 2023. \u201cI was astonished that the estate had the confidence to directly try and address the child sexual abuse allegations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Reed claimed that there were \u201ca number of outright distortions\u201d in the script when it came to telling Jordan\u2019s story. He believed that the production was trying to show a more sympathetic side to Jackson in an effort to protect his reputation. (Chandler\u2019s case did not go to trial and was not substantiated in court.) Reed said he was especially shocked at how the film treated the findings of Jackson\u2019s notorious strip-search. \u201cIt was stated that the photograph and the drawing did not match,\u201d Reed said. \u201cThat\u2019s not the case. It was rewriting history.\u201d<\/p>\n

The finished Michael biopic ends in 1984, years before the singer met Chandler, Jackson\u2019s estate said. After principal photography wrapped in 2024, a Jackson estate attorney realised that there was a clause in Jackson\u2019s 1994 settlement with Chandler that prohibited the mention of him in any movie. \u201cSubstantial footage\u201d was scrapped, a Lionsgate spokesperson told<\/a> the New York Times, and the estate stumped up the $10m-15m needed to reshoot the film\u2019s ending. Michael, originally scheduled for a spring 2025 release, was delayed until that October and then pushed again to a new release date of 24 April. The film faces a monumental task: to answer Jackson\u2019s critics while also doing honest justice to the man behind the myth.<\/p>\n

In an email, Singer, Jackson\u2019s estate lawyer, wrote: \u201cFalse or misleading claims about how an early script allegedly portrayed the discredited allegations made against Michael almost a decade later are both inaccurate and irrelevant to the film since the movie ends at a time period when no such claims had even been made.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bottom line is that discussion of earlier versions of the biopic\u2019s script is entirely irrelevant to Michael \u2013 the motion picture that was actually produced and is being released globally next week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lionsgate films did not respond to multiple requests for comment.<\/p>\n

Michael Jackson holding the eight awards he won for Thriller at the 1984 Grammy awards. Photograph: Doug Pizac\/AP<\/p>\n

If anyone\u2019s life story deserves an honest biopic, it\u2019s Jackson\u2019s; he rose from an abusive childhood to change the face of music with epoch-defining albums and superhuman live performances. While his behavior became increasingly strange and allegedly criminal in later decades, in death he has maintained arguably the biggest \u2013 and certainly the most vocal \u2013 fanbase of any deceased celebrity. After Mac Miller, he is the most-followed deceased person on Instagram.<\/p>\n

Initially, it seemed possible that Michael would embrace a rounded picture of Jackson\u2019s life. \u201cHe was a great artist. He was human,\u201d Antoine Fuqua, the director, said on Good Morning America in 2023: \u201cWe\u2019re going to show the good, bad and the ugly \u2026 We just going to tell the facts.\u201d The following year, producer Graham King told Variety<\/a> of his aim to \u201chumanize but not sanitize and present the most compelling, unbiased story I can capture in a single feature film and let the audience decide how they feel after watching it\u201d.<\/p>\n

With a starry cast that included Jaafar Jackson in the lead role, as well as Colman Domingo, Nia Long and Miles Teller, shooting on Michael began in January 2024 under the code name \u201cMaven\u201d, after delays from the 2023 Sag-Aftra strike. As principal photography began, the cast faced questions about the allegations against Jackson. \u201cBefore I choose any role, I consider everything about it,\u201d Teller<\/a> said in a 2024 interview. \u201cRegardless of what you know or what your opinion may be, Michael is one of the greatest to ever do it, if not the greatest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Domingo said that Michael would provide a nuanced portrait of Jackson. \u201cI actually don\u2019t think it\u2019s trying to prove his innocence,\u201d he told GQ<\/a>. \u201cI think it\u2019s actually just trying to give a great examination of an artist, what made the artist who he is, what makes him complicated, for you to leave with your own answers.\u201d In 2024, a spokesperson for the film played down the Jackson estate\u2019s involvement in the biopic, saying<\/a> they \u201cput their trust in Graham King, stepping out of the creative process\u201d.<\/p>\n

Current reports paint a different picture, claiming<\/a> that John Branca, the co-executor of Jackson\u2019s estate, was involved in production decisions. In a 2025 Financial Times<\/a> profile, Branca said that he took pains to ensure that the Michael team were on board with the unsullied version of Jackson that the estate wants the world to see. \u201cAfter Leaving Neverland, I sensed a wavering force [among the first people attached to the movie],\u201d he said. \u201cAnd unless you understand that Michael\u2019s innocent, we can\u2019t have you.\u201d<\/p>\n

When approached for comment, Branca responded through Singer, saying that the Guardian\u2019s inquiries were \u201clargely premised on a false or highly misleading understanding of the actual history and evolution of the biopic\u2019s script and production. Because of that, no response to \u2026 specific inquiries is necessary or appropriate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jackson\u2019s son Prince served as an executive producer on the film. According to a source close to the production, \u201cfamily members and other friends of Michael\u201d would often drop by the set, and Jermaine Jackson, Jackson\u2019s brother, was often around to offer input. \u201cI would see Fuqua walk over to him, or they would walk over to each other and exchange words,\u201d said a source, who claims that the director took Jermaine\u2019s feedback on board. \u201cWhat I really saw him trying to do was to give the Jackson family as much onus [as he could].\u201d<\/p>\n

The cast of Michael at the film\u2019s premiere in Berlin on 10 April. Photograph: Action Press\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

At least, some of the Jackson family. At the Michael premiere in Berlin this month, most of the Jackson clan showed out in full force to support the film: Jackson\u2019s brothers Jackie, Jermaine and Marlon, as well as Jackson\u2019s sons, Prince and Bigi (formerly known as Blanket). Janet<\/a> and Paris Jackson were not in attendance. Last year, Paris criticized the Michael film as a \u201csugar-coated\u201d biopic containing a number of \u201cfull-blown lies\u201d about her father, while a report<\/a> broke last month that Janet Jackson had an intensely negative reaction at an early screening of the movie. (Janet is not a character in the film, sources say. Paris and Janet Jackson did not respond to multiple requests for comment.)<\/p>\n

Domingo was also absent at the Berlin premiere. As the only true A-lister among the cast, the Oscar-nominated Domingo gives Michael a sheen of credibility: you\u2019d think that the production would bend over backwards to get him there. But the actor was tied up with rehearsals for a Saturday Night Live hosting gig<\/a>, during which he strangely made no mention of the biopic that he was seemingly there to promote. And on Hot Ones<\/a> the previous month, Domingo extensively discussed his roles in Fear the Walking Dead<\/a> and Sing Sing<\/a> \u2013 as well as his time as a circus aerialist \u2013 but only mentioned the Michael film in a brief plug for its release date.<\/p>\n

Domingo had been the production\u2019s most-outspoken cast member. Now it seemed as if he was cautious of saying too much. In September, Domingo said<\/a> that Paris Jackson was \u201cvery much in support of our film\u201d, prompting an indignant response from Jackson\u2019s daughter. \u201cDon\u2019t be telling people I was \u2018helpful\u2019 on the set of a movie I had zero percent involvement in \u2026 that is so weird,\u201d she wrote on Instagram. \u201cI read one of the first drafts of the script and gave my notes about what was dishonest\/didn\u2019t sit right with me and when they didn\u2019t address it I moved on with my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Michael Jackson died in 2009, he was half a billion dollars in debt<\/a>. In death, he is something like a golden goose that keeps laying 24k eggs. Michael, the film, is part of a years-long mission by the Jackson estate to turn Jackson Inc into a billion-dollar company. After the success of Thriller Live, which ran in the West End for 11 years, the Jackson estate doubled down with the wildly successful MJ the Musical, which has grossed more than $300m worldwide with Broadway and touring productions. Despite hitting a PR road bump when the show\u2019s writer, Lynn Nottage, said<\/a> she \u201cdidn\u2019t know\u201d whether Jackson was a pedophile, the production effectively glossed over controversy, going so far as to ban<\/a> one reporter for asking \u201cdifficult questions\u201d about Jackson\u2019s child molestation charges on opening night.<\/p>\n

Another Jackson tribute, Can You Feel It, opens in London\u2019s West End this May. After a $600m sale of half of Jackson\u2019s masters to Sony in 2024, Forbes put the estate\u2019s value<\/a> at $3.5bn last year. \u201cThey\u2019ve built up, from a position of debt, a vast amount of capital within the business,\u201d Reed said. \u201cAnd they\u2019ve done that brilliantly. Part of that, obviously, has been safeguarding his reputation.\u201d (Reed\u2019s Leaving Neverland was removed<\/a> from HBO Max in 2024 after a settlement with the Jackson estate.)<\/p>\n

Michael Jackson waves to supporters as he arrives for his child molestation trial at the Santa Barbara county superior court in Santa Maria, California, in 2005. Photograph: Michael A Mariant\/AP<\/p>\n

When he was questioned about sleepovers at his Neverland ranch in a 2003 Martin Bashir documentary, Jackson called<\/a> sharing your bed \u201cthe most loving thing to do\u201d. The hallway to the singer\u2019s bedroom was fitted out<\/a> with a hi-tech security system and an alarm that would sound if anyone approached. Jackson\u2019s bedroom also housed the singer\u2019s collection of erotic photos, which forensic experts found<\/a> to have the fingerprints of boys who had slept over.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe narrative that Jackson and his publicist always tried to create was that he sought the company of children because he felt lonely and misunderstood in the world of adults,\u201d Reed said. \u201cAnd fine, you can be a child at heart, but you don\u2019t need to drag them into your bedroom, lock the door and spend the night with them with very little clothing on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMichael Jackson was acquitted by a unanimous jury of 12,\u201d said Singer, Jackson\u2019s estate lawyer, referencing the musician\u2019s 2005 criminal trial for child molestation. \u201cThe estate firmly and unequivocally believes in Michael Jackson\u2019s innocence, just as a unanimous jury did, the only time this issue was presented in court.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the wake of news of the Cascio lawsuit this February, Lionsgate has doubled down on their Michael marketing assault, which includes expensive novelty<\/a> billboards<\/a>, flashmobs<\/a> on the streets of New York and LA, as well as a pop-up gallery<\/a>. Cast members Jaafar Jackson, Domingo, Long and Fuqua have appeared on the covers of magazines for glossy photoshoots, with upbeat interviews focusing on Jackson\u2019s genius<\/a> and Jaafar\u2019s intense preparations<\/a> for the role.<\/p>\n

A recent Hypebeast digital cover<\/a> featuring a joint Q&A between Fuqua and Jaafar felt particularly stage managed; the feature was billed as \u201cpresented by Lionsgate\u201d (magazine speak for \u201cthe studio paid for this\u201d). Meanwhile, an Essence<\/a> digital cover does mention Jackson\u2019s alleged abuse in passing, but shies away from asking thorny questions to the cast. \u201cThe goal for us, for me, was to honor Michael in a way that would make the fans excited,\u201d Long said. At time of publication, neither Fuqua nor the cast have been interviewed by a mainstream news outlet, and the film has only screened for long-lead publications.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Lionsgate is controlling the narrative by flooding social media with praise from fawning fans who have been allowed to see the movie. \u201cMASTERPIECE,\u201d reads one tweet that the studio reposted on their Instagram account. \u201cIt\u2019s perfect,\u201d says another. Footage<\/a> from a fan screening in Brazil showed an audience moved to tears. Lionsgate flew a dozen influencers<\/a> out to Michael\u2019s Berlin premiere, who posed on the red carpet and gushed about the film in social media posts. \u201cI could have had another two hours [of the movie] easily,\u201d said Loren Sharice, a social creator and one time American Idol finalist. \u201cActually, I want a director\u2019s cut with everything they cut out of that movie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe estate will do anything possible to keep the massive cashflow to the estate and its trustees going,\u201d says Howard King, the attorney representing the Cascico siblings who are suing the Jackson estate for child sex trafficking. \u201c\u200b\u200bI don\u2019t know anything about the biopic other than it\u2019s somewhat of a puff piece: a Melania-like production to glorify Michael Jackson.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jaafar Jackson as Michael Jackson in Michael. Photograph: Bruce Talamon\/Lionsgate<\/p>\n

Music biopics have been a Hollywood fixture since the 40s, but have exploded in popularity in recent years. When Billboard<\/a> tallied the highest-grossing music biopics of all time this January, the entire Top 10 was made up of post-2000 movies with total grosses of over $2.4bn. Despite mixed critical receptions, estate-approved biopics like Bob Marley: One Love<\/a> and Bohemian Rhapsody<\/a> have been staggeringly popular, with $900m box office takings and four Oscars for the latter. In recent years, it has seemed like no pop legend is safe from a stage-managed biopic that papers over the knottier parts of their story. Sam Taylor Wood\u2019s Back To Black<\/a> portrayed Amy Winehouse as a broken bird and reimagined her villainous father as a saintly figure, while 2024\u2019s estate-managed Whitney Houston biopic<\/a> I Wanna Dance with Somebody felt like a disposable cash-in, with none of the raw insight of the 2017 documentary Can I Be Me<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, productions that aim to take a clear-eyed approach to pop icons can seem doomed. The Oscar-winning film-maker Ezra Edelman spent five years making a nine-hour documentary about Prince for Netflix, which the streamer killed<\/a> indefinitely after the Prince estate learned it would accuse the singer of physical and emotional abuse. \u2018This is a gift \u2013 a nine-hour treatment about an artist that was, by the way, fucking brilliant,\u201d Edelman said<\/a>. \u201cEverything about who you believe he is is in this movie. You get to bathe in his genius. And yet you also have to confront his humanity.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a recent interview, director Fuqua described his aim for Michael to show the \u201chuman being\u201d behind the \u201csuperhero\u201d. As the film\u2019s release date approaches, audiences will be able to see for themselves just how far Michael is willing to go. A source close to the production said that the attitude while filming was a little different. \u201cWhat everybody was saying when we were on set is, \u2018This is to highlight the life of Michael Jackson and all the positive things he did,\u2019\u201d the source said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe film panders to a very specific section of my dad\u2019s fandom that still lives in a fantasy, and they\u2019re going to be happy with it,\u201d Paris Jackson said. \u201cThe thing about these biopics is it\u2019s Hollywood. It\u2019s fantasy land \u2013 it\u2019s not real. But it\u2019s sold to you as real \u2026 the narrative is being controlled, and there\u2019s a lot of inaccuracy, and there\u2019s a lot of just full-blown lies.\u201d<\/p>\n

That \u201cfantasy\u201d may still prove irresistible to audiences. Michael is on track to open with close to $200m according to some estimates, and Lionsgate is already hatching plans<\/a> for a sequel. \u201cIt kind of fills me with horror, the degree to which everyone can turn a blind eye to the fact that this guy was a bit of a monster,\u201d Reed said. \u201cSo many people join in the cover-up. There\u2019s this bubble in Hollywood which is like: \u2018Dude, are you insane? What are you doing, trying to impugn Michael Jackson. It\u2019s Michael fucking Jackson. Do you know how much money that\u2019s worth?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n