Michael Jackson will have his story brought to film, Deadline has revealed.
The film is to be directed by Antoine Fuqua, whose credits include the Oscar-winning Training Day, The Equalizer, The Magnificent Seven, Emancipation, and many more movies. John Logan, the screenwriter for the James Bond films Skyfall and Spectre, is writing the script; Graham King, who produced the mega-hit Queen biopic, Bohemian Rhapsody, is also on board and will produce alongside the co-executors of Jackson’s estate, John Branca and John McClain.
Sources told Deadline that the film would undoubtedly capture Jackson's rise to fame, including the days when he fronted The Jackson 5. According to the publication, his career achievements will be in the spotlight, but "it will also deal squarely with the pedophile accusations that dogged his later years up to his death in 2009".
Lionsgate, the company that holds worldwide rights to the film, is surely expecting a hit in the vein of Bohemian Rhapsody. Now, the question is, who will portray Michael Jackson on screen? Will they be a dancer and singer? An actor who captures the singer's mannerisms but needs singing lessons? Let's just hope it isn't Joseph Fiennes again.
Antoine Fuqua said about the movie, "The first films of my career were music videos, and I still feel that combining film and music are a deep part of who I am." Indeed, his music video directing credits include Prince, Lil Wayne, Toni Braxton and Stevie Wonder. He added, "For me, there is no artist with the power, the charisma, and the sheer musical genius of Michael Jackson. I was influenced to make music videos by watching his work – the first Black artist to play in heavy rotation on MTV. His music and those images are part of my worldview, and the chance to tell his story on the screen alongside his music was irresistible."
