Michael Jackson biopic thrown into doubt over historic legal agreement
The upcoming Michael Jackson biopic has become jeopardised due to a legal agreement made in 1993, according to a new report.
Michael, set for release in October, is directed by Antoine Fuqua and stars Jackson’s nephew Jaafar Jackson as his late uncle. Meanwhile, Colman Domingo is portraying Jackson’s father, Joe, Miles Teller plays his manager, John Branca, and Kat Graham has taken on the iconic role of Diana Ross.
Initially, it was set to be released in April, but in November, Lionsgate decided to push the date back until October 3rd due to considerations regarding the awards season in 2026.
The film boasts a budget of $150 million, and shooting has concluded on the project. According to a new report by Puck, “the film’s third act, in particular, hinges specifically on the impact” of the legal case involving then-13-year-old Jordan Chandler, who accused Jackson of sexual misconduct and reached an out-of-court settlement with the singer for $23 million.
However, the report alleges, “Years before signing off on the Michael movie with the Chandlers featured in the script, Jackson’s team agreed they would never include the family in any such movie.” It’s claimed they signed a legal agreement which prohibited the Chandler family from being used in any dramatic story, which renders a portion of the biopic unusable.
Although this is unlikely to cause Universal to scrap the project due to the studios already spending $150 million to make the biopic, they will likely have to spend sizeable sums to rescue the movie with rewrites and reshoots.
Universal and the Michael Jackson Estate are yet to comment on the report.
Notably, Michael is produced by Graham King who previously helmed the Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody in 2018, which saw Rami Malek win an Academy Award for his portrayal.
Last April, King said of the upcoming movie: “We are incredibly proud of this movie. I’m looking forward to giving to the audience a film like they’ve never seen before. 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 who ever lived.”
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