Inside Michael Movie Reshoots and Removing Child Abuse Allegations

Key Points:

• The upcoming film "Michael," about Michael Jackson's rise to superstardom, originally included a third act focused on the 1993 child molestation allegations but was reworked after the Jackson estate discovered a legal clause barring mention of accuser Jordan Chandler.
• The movie's release has been delayed several times, now scheduled for spring 2026, following reshoots and script revisions that shifted the focus away from Jackson's scandals to his music career and personal struggles, including his relationship with his father and recovery from a pyrotechnics accident.
• Jackson's nephew Jaafar Jackson stars as Michael, with Colman Domingo portraying Joe Jackson; the estate has been heavily involved in production, though some family members, like Janet Jackson and two of Michael's children, were not involved.
• The film emphasizes Jackson's musical achievements and personal challenges while avoiding the controversial allegations, inspired partly by the success of the Broadway musical "MJ," which also ends before the 1993 accusations.
• Early box office tracking predicts a strong opening above $55 million domestically, with studios hoping for a global gross of at least $700 million, and there are plans to potentially expand "Michael" into a multi-part series covering later periods of Jackson's life.