Source : @Variety
LOS ANGELES – Jaafar Jackson, who played his late uncle in the record-breaking biopic “Michael”, says he is “more than ready” to begin filming the sequel, although he has not yet been given a start date, Variety reported.
“I haven’t been told anything concrete, but whatever decision is made, I’m more than ready to get back into it and excited for where that goes,” Jackson told Variety’s Awards Circuit podcast. “I haven’t been told a date or anything solid yet. As far as my schedule, it’s open.”
His comments follow remarks by Lionsgate’s Adam Fogelson that production on “Michael” Part 2 could start at the end of this year or early next, with a release targeted for 2027 or 2028, according to Variety.
Directed by Antoine Fuqua and opened on 24 April, “Michael” became the first biopic in history to surpass US$1 billion at the worldwide box office and is Lionsgate’s biggest release ever. Jackson, 30, had never acted professionally before taking the lead role. He told Variety that, two years before production began, he wrote down a list of goals that included beating “Bohemian Rhapsody” and crossing the US$1 billion mark. “When it did that, I was pretty emotional,” he said. “I know how proud Michael would be. He wanted to break many records.”
Jackson also spoke about losing the film’s original third act, which reportedly dealt with sensitive subject matter and never made the final cut. He said he knew going in that not everything shot would survive the edit. “Even the things that weren’t used, the experience I got from them, made me a better actor,” he said, adding that it was “something you have to deal with when making a film”.
Asked about the more complicated discussions and allegations surrounding his uncle’s life, and where the sequel should go, Jackson said the direction of Part 2 was not his decision. “Part two, I can’t say, because I don’t know. It’s not up to me. My job is to come prepared and deliver the best performance I can. But to know Michael, it starts with the music.”
The actor is now part of the Best Actor awards conversation, which Variety noted includes names such as Ryan Gosling, Pedro Pascal, Matt Damon and John Malkovich. Jackson described his first Oscar campaign as “a crazy and surreal experience” and said he was “taking it a day at a time”, adding that he would support the film in whatever way the studio needed.
Preparing for the role took about two years before he was confirmed. Jackson built his own archive of Michael Jackson’s songs, demos, journals, rehearsals and performances, trained with acting coach Angela Gibbs and studied the methods of Stanislavski, Meisner and Uta Hagen. He said the voice came first: after he sent producer Graham King an unsolicited voice note speaking as Michael, King arranged a coach for him the next day. The hardest part, he said, was the movement, particularly the footwork for the “Bad” performance that closes the film.
The son of Jermaine Jackson, he described the experience of recreating his own family’s history on screen, with Colman Domingo playing his grandfather, Joe Jackson, and Nia Long playing his grandmother, Katherine. His father chose to watch the film for the first time with an audience at its Berlin premiere, and later called to say he could not tell his son apart from his late brother in many moments.
Jackson spoke to Variety two days after wrapping his second film, “Supermax”, opposite Will Smith, following about 40 days of shooting in Australia. He said the role was completely different from Michael and involved no singing or dancing.
Variety shared the interview on X, where its post quoting Jackson’s comments on the sequel can be seen here. The full interview is available on Variety.
Source: Variety
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