This month will see the release of Lionsgate/Universal Pictures‘ Michael Jackson biopic “Michael” from veteran filmmaker Antoine Fuqua, but there is a new report claiming that the movie was going to address the subject of the mega-popular pop star’s child abuse allegations in the early 1990s, only for those scenes to be cut from the film entirely (Jackson would famously go to court in 2005 to defend himself in a criminal trial in California alleging he had sexually molested a 13-year-old boy).
A report from Variety claims that the production had shot sequences with law enforcement collecting evidence at Neverland Ranch, only for that to be removed from the film, detailing the extra costs of $10-15 million on reshoots as well.
“In one scene from the film’s original script, the King of Pop stares at his reflection in the mirror, capturing his sorrowful gaze as police car lights flash behind him. It’s 1993, a decade after ‘Thriller’ gripped the culture, and Jackson has just been accused of child molestation. But the sequence with investigators who arrive at Neverland Ranch to search for evidence is one of many that were left on the cutting room floor.”
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The reasoning? Well, it might not be as nefarious as you may be imagining, and it comes down to a potential violation of a settlement clause the Jackson estate made with one of Michael’s accusers and ended up seriously altering what was shot for the film’s third act. “Was supposed to explore the impact of the allegations on Jackson’s life, with much of its third act devoted to the scandal. But that finale was scrapped, along with any mention of the child molestation accusations, according to sources with knowledge of the production. That’s after attorneys for the Jackson estate, which served as a producer, realized there was a clause in a settlement with one of the singer’s accusers, Jordan Chandler, that barred the depiction or mention of him in any movie.”
Reshoots would take place last June in Los Angeles over 22 days with that additional photography adding an extra $10-15 million to the budget (said to have been originally budgted at $155 million), however, the Jackson estate is said to have shouldered those costs because it was due to their own error as they are now equity partners with Lionsgate/producers as part of that million-dollar investment.
Notably, “Michael” had the backing of the Jackson family, with Jaafar Jackson, son of Jackson 5 member Jermaine Jackson, cast in the role of his late uncle. This would be Jaafar’s feature debut as an actor (obviously, the casting made sense as not many actors likely could have embodied the part, or may want to), and had raised some minor questions on how much creative control the Jackson family would have overall on the movie. That said, how this all reads is that these reshoots were more of an attempt to avoid a lawsuit than attempting to sanitize the events (although that is going by how the Variety story is being framed).
Instead, the drama of the film revolves around the allegations, which are said to now focus on Michael’s relationship with his showbiz father and manager, Joe Jackson (previously portrayed as abusive in the past projects), who is played by the ever-charming Colman Domingo. Joe was against Michael pursuing a solo career, believing it would damage the Jackson 5 group (made up of his brothers). Another missing element will be Michael’s sister and fellow singer, Janet Jackson.
An official logline for the biopic hitting U.S. theaters on April 26:
The cinematic portrayal of the life and legacy of one of the most influential artists the world has ever known. The film tells the story of Michael Jackson’s life beyond the music, tracing his journey from the discovery of his extraordinary talent as the lead of the Jackson Five, to the visionary artist whose creative ambition fueled a relentless pursuit to become the biggest entertainer in the world. Highlighting both his life off-stage and some of the most iconic performances from his early solo career, the film gives audiences a front-row seat to Michael Jackson as never before. This is where his story begins.
While we could envision that Lionsgate and Fuqua will likely respond to the claims made by the trade report, it’s interesting that they would have waited until the film’s release month to drop this information (since this all happened last year), unless the story’s relevance is directly tied to the upcoming date (wouldn’t be the first trade story strategically scheduled days/weeks ahead of a general audience premier).
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