Emancipation and Training Day director Antoine Fuqua is set to direct a Michael Jackson biopic, which will star Jackson’s real-life nephew Jaafar Jackson in the leading role. Jaafar, the son of Michael’s brother Jermaine Jackson, also has his own music career, giving him not just the looks, but the skillset needed to hone in on his uncle’s story. The film, tentatively titled just Michael, has a script by John Logan.
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Michael is being produced by Bohemian Rhapsody producer Graham King, whose GK Films will produce alongside the co-executors of Jackson’s estate, John Branca and John McClain, according to Deadline, who first broke the casting news. Lionsgate will handle distribution.
Fuqua took to social media to confirm the casting of Jaafar, who has been singing and dancing since age 12. You can see his Instagram post below.
The description of Jackson as “the man who became the King of Pop, coupled with Jaafar Jackson’s age, may suggest that the movie will take an approach similar to Bohemian Rhapsody, laser-focusing in on a specific event or period in Jackson’s life to treat it as a microcosm of his experience, rather than trying to tell a sprawling, epic story that covers the various stages of his life and fame.
Music biopics are often difficult to get off the ground, because the artist’s estate or record label typically owns the music rights, and guards them jealously. It can be difficult to tell stories that delve into any aspect of the artist that is not part of their official “brand,” which is a criticism that has been levied at Bohemian Rhapsody.
In this case, it’s the Jackson estate that controls the music, so it tracks that this movie is very much turning into a family affair, with Jaafar in the lead and members of Jackson’s team and family likely to have executive producer credits.
In addition to Bohemian Rhapsody, King previously collaborated with Logan (who was nominated for an Academy Award for his screenplay to Ridley Scott’s Gladiator) on The Aviator, director Martin Scorsese’s life story of reclusive millionaire Howard Hughes.
According to the Deadline story, “Michael will also be driven by Jackson’s musical accomplishments, which gives the film global potential similar to Bohemian Rhapsody, which grossed over $900 million worldwide, boosted the song catalog of Queen, got a Best Picture Oscar nom and a win for star Rami Malek.” That’s as close as we are likely to get to an official synopsis before production begins.
