Michael– Part One

There were many who were skeptical about a movie like this being a success, not least because who in the world could play the King of Pop, as he was called.   As it turns out, they didn’t have to look far— Michael’s nephew both looks like and has a voice like Michael Jackson.  Here is the report from Today and the Hollywood Reporter on what happened with the singing.

Jaafar Jackson, Michael Jackson’s nephew, trained extensively to embody his uncle’s voice, dance, and mannerisms for the 2026 film “Michael”. During the performances, he sang live into the microphone over Michael’s original tracks, creating a blend of his vocals and Michael’s for authenticity. In some scenes, particularly a cappella studio sessions, only Jaafar’s voice is heard, showcasing his own singing talent. 

The filmmakers used a sophisticated audio process to ensure the singing sounded like Michael Jackson, blending Jaafar’s live vocals with Michael’s studio recordings when necessary. This approach allowed Jaafar to perform scats, ad-libs, and other vocal nuances that were not present in Michael’s original recordings, giving the film a dynamic and authentic feel. For younger Michael Jackson scenes, Juliano Valdi also performed live vocals, which were similarly blended with Michael’s recordings. 

Jaafar’s preparation involved years of training, including practicing Michael’s pitch, cadence, and tone, as well as dancing for hours to replicate his uncle’s iconic moves. His performances were praised by audiences and family members alike, with his grandmother Katherine Jackson noting that he embodied Michael so convincingly that she sometimes could not tell the difference. 

In summary, Jaafar Jackson did sing in the film, both in combination with Michael Jackson’s original voice and independently in certain sequences, making his portrayal a mix of homage and personal performance. 

That only answers one question. What about the authenticity?  On the whole, the film portrays things reasonably accurately. While it does give us the scenes where Michael when young was beaten by his domineering father and also the scene where his hair caught on fire while filming a Pepsi commercial, and Michael’s living in a fantasy world of comic books and movies, with all sorts of animal pets instead of fully growing up, nothing is said about his bearing witness as a Jehovah Witness, nor about claims about women claiming to have had sexual relationships with Michael (except indirectly through the singing of the song Billy Jean), nor about his sleeping with children but then this movie ends in 1988 with Michael’s sold out show in London, and the movie concludes with a ‘to be continued’ notice……

The critics have given the movie a 39% rating, which is in the rotten zone, but the general public loves the movie, presumably mainly for the excellent music and dancing (97% fresh).

If there is indeed a sequel, we will see how much sticking to the facts there is, as various reputed and reported scandals came to light.  It’s probably not an accident that the first film concludes with Jackson performing ‘Bad’.