The Michael Jackson movie will directly compete against The Odyssey at next year’s Golden Globes – after being rejected from the show’s comedy and musical categories.
The Golden Globes splits major nominees into Drama and Comedy/Musical categories, while allowing movie studios to submit their films into whichever category they choose. But eyebrows have been raised after the Globes announced that they had rejected Michael as a Comedy/Musical and insisted it compete as a Drama, despite Michael’s backers at Lionsgate attempting to do the opposite.
Michael tracks the life of the late superstar from his childhood up to his late Eighties imperial phase, with Jackson’s real-life nephew Jaafar in the title role.
While on paper it may seem odd that Michael – which features numerous recreations of Jackson’s biggest hits – was not approved as a Comedy/Musical at the Globes, it speaks to a stipulation in the ceremony’s rulebook that states music must propel the narrative forward in order for the film to classify as a musical. Other recent films to include musical performances that have been forced to compete as dramas include Elvis and A Complete Unknown, biopics of Elvis Presley and Bob Dylan.
But it means that Michael – which received largely negative reviews upon release – will be forced to face off against acclaimed dramas including Christopher Nolan’s billion-dollar blockbuster, the Spanish epic La Bola Negra and the Andrew Scott drama Elsinore, as well as the eagerly anticipated Dune: Part Three.
Lionsgate is hoping that Michael will replicate the film’s enormous box office success during awards season. The film grossed more than $1bn worldwide earlier this year, becoming the highest-grossing biographical film in history, and the most successful film in the history of Lionsgate.
A sequel is currently in development, despite uncertainty about how much the film can legally say about the child abuse allegations made by then 13-year-old Jordan Chandler in 1993, a scandal that derailed Jackson’s career.
Michael notoriously ends the “Thriller” singer’s story right before the first allegations were made, with last-minute changes to the film seeing scenes depicting the Chandler allegations and subsequent investigation cut from the movie. The film’s ending was hastily reshot after lawyers realised that part of the settlement agreement in the Chandler case meant that there could be no depiction or mention of Chandler in any movie.
Despite this, Lionsgate chairman Adam Fogelson said in August that a sequel is “targeting a production start towards the end of this year or early next”, while Jaafar Jackson has teased a follow-up too.
Speaking to GQ Middle East this month, Jackson said he hopes that “the second film will give even more insight from [Michael’s] point of view, because at the end of the day, [the allegations] are always from someone else’s”.
He continued: “It’s someone else’s story. It’s someone else’s idea of what it is, and it’s mainly driven by an agenda. And that’s really the issue we’ve been having as a family – not having Michael’s voice being heard. I think that’s very, very important, especially in the late years.”
The 84th Golden Globe nominations will be announced on 7 December, with the ceremony itself – once again hosted by comedian Nikki Glaser – will take place on 10 January.
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