Photo: Lionsgate/Everett Collection
Michael, the critically reviled new biopic of Michael Jackson, only covers the star’s life up to 1988. Spoilers for Michael, but Jackson continued living past that date. The film ends with a “His Story Continues” title card, as if James Bond teasing Skyfall. But will Michael Jackson actually return in a second movie?
Michael was originally set to come out in April 2025, but the film reportedly had to reshoot the entire third act. Fuqua’s vision for the film ended with Jackson fighting the child sex abuse allegations that defined his later public image — specifically those brought by the Chandler family in 1993. Puck said the Chandlers were depicted as “money-grubbing,” when they contractually aren’t allowed to be depicted at all. In the ‘90s, the family signed a settlement that prohibits the dramatization of their story, something the Jackson estate apparently forgot. After the reshoots, producers pushed to split Michael into two films. It’s unclear whether the footage for the second part will ever see the light of day, however.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the “His Story Continues” title card was added to Michael late in the game. It seems stakeholders are still weighing the cost-benefit analysis of whether Michael 2 is worth pursuing. Reportedly on the Pro side is director Antoine Fuqua, who always imagined his Michael to be more dramatic. “I shot him being stripped naked, treated like an animal, a monster,” he told The New Yorker of the scenes he shot of the Neverland raid.
Colman Domingo seems to be more on the fence. The actor, who plays Jackson patriarch Joe said on Today that “We don’t know yet” if there’s a sequel. “The film takes place from the ’60s to 1988, so it does not go into the first allegations,” he said when asked about omitting the allegations against Jackson. “And there’s a possibility of there being a part two that may deal with some other things that happened afterwards.” Nia Long, who plays Jackson’s mother, was more mercenary: “There could be,” she joked, “if the price is right.”
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