"Michael", a biopic about Michael Jackson, is officially happening.

[etoile 37]

wait, what letter!?

Katherine wrote about it in her book:

Unfortunately, the stories disturbed Michael to the degree that he wound up penning an open letter to the press from his Tokyo hotel room.
Michael wrote:
"Like the old Indian proverb says, “Do not judge a man until you’ve walked two moons in his moccasins.”
Most people don’t know me. That is why they write such things .... I cry very, very often because it hurts and I worry about the children, all my children all over the world. I live for them ....
Animals strike not from malice, but because they want to live. It is the same with those who criticize. They desire our blood, not our pain.
But still I must achieve. I must seek truth in all things. I must endure for the power I was sent forth, for the world, for the children.
But have mercy, for I’ve been bleeding a long time now."
I cried when I read his letter. If only the press knew the Michael I know. I thought. So kind, so sensitive; childlike, yet wise.

 

[Choupine0099]

People saw MJ on top of the world during the Thriller era, such a happy time, not realizing he was privately dealing with vitiligo, lupus and painful scalp surgeries. Next time you watch the Victory tour, take a moment to remember that Michael had been severely burned just before that and how hard it must have been for him to go through that tour, pretending that everything was alright.

This exactly.
For me, i wont care whether the biopic address the Allegation. I view it more important to showcase his struggles other than the no childhood. Looking at the Thriller era, it is crazy how quickly he returned to the public eyes after the burn and even did a tour, when it is also when he started wearing head pieces and started experiencing baldness all that in the public eyes for someone that was very shy and having insecurities about his appearance. Adding to it Vitiligo and Lupus, it is not easy. People pick a lot at MJ from lipsynching post dangerous, but people forget that post dangerous MJ has been famous for 25 years and singing for 30. As a child he had the burden of singing not only because he loved it, but to be the primary breadwiner of his family. 30 years carreers singing and dancing is other people sometime whole life careers and he had that by 35. Nobody take the time to appreciat it fully. Lupus also in the long run takes a toll on the singers' voice even. I believe all these are so not known that it will be good to show that. If people get currious enough to do their research it will be a good outcome. LOT of information is available, and it is the beauty of the internet era, there is not just SINGLE narrative.

 

[etoile 37]

In the 2000s, this happened:

In the 80s, this happened:

And in the 70s, this happened (at 53:23):

The Jacksons

Podcast Episode · Questlove Supreme · 06/02/2021 · 2h 5m

podcasts.apple.com

The difference? We learned only recently about what happened in the 70s and the 80s because Michael never talked about it. As he got older, Michael started telling us about all the things he was going through and we went through them with him, whereas when he was younger he kept it all to himself and suffered in silence. So of course the 2000s were more painful for us the fans, but the early years were not easier for Michael despite us fans living happily in our ignorance of what was going on behind the scenes.

 

[Blues_Away2023]

From what I've seen in video footage of him and based on the funny stories shared by his children and friends, yes, outside of dark times (like the trial), he also had many fun, happy moments. He still enjoyed a good water balloon fight or playing pranks and goofing around. He still had ideas for projects and dreams for the future.

I'm not sure why MJ's last years always get singled out as being the worse years for him, when really he's been going through hardships his whole life. I remember MJ talking about how sad and frightened he was during his childhood and teenage years. I remember that sad, heartbreaking letter Michael wrote to the media during the Bad tour, a period that many fans view as the happiest time, because it was a happy time for them. But clearly Michael was suffering a lot even back then. The difference is that we didn't know about it, because it all happened behind closed doors, whereas his last years played out in public for all to see. People saw MJ on top of the world during the Thriller era, such a happy time, not realizing he was privately dealing with vitiligo, lupus and painful scalp surgeries. Next time you watch the Victory tour, take a moment to remember that Michael had been severely burned just before that and how hard it must have been for him to go through that tour, pretending that everything was alright. So in a way, his last years are not really different from his early years, just more of the same: MJ going through a lot of hard times, and trying to be as resilient as he could.

I appreciate your input but I’m not looking for a big debate about who’s wrong or who was right - sure there would have been plenty of personal happy times for him in his life during this period (2001 onwards) but overall, this was absolutely his worst decade.

I also agree he suffered throughout his life not just his later years but the strain of those earlier periods certainly caught up with him even more in the 00s.

The high of the 80s were long gone, his reputation was in tatters , he was a joke figure in the media and seen as a has-been who’s popularity was on the decline.

From the Bashir documentary and the baby dangling incident to the trial and then ultimately his death - I could go on and on but I won’t.

Michael in the 00’s was broken, and living in a fantasy world reliant on pain medication whilst dealing with serious mental trauma. Millions in debt and physically not looking good either due to excessive surgery and restoration work.

Here was a man who was the biggest celebrity on the planet adored by millions and had mega success - yet in 05 he was potentially facing the rest of his life in prison. You just need to look at the verdict day to see the impact this all had on him. He was done.

 

[etoile 37]

The high of the 80s were long gone, his reputation was in tatters , he was a joke figure in the media and seen as a has-been who’s popularity was on the decline.

From the Bashir documentary and the baby dangling incident to the trial and then ultimately his death - I could go on and on but I won’t.

Michael in the 00’s was broken, and living in a fantasy world reliant on pain medication whilst dealing with serious mental trauma. Millions in debt and physically not looking good either due to excessive surgery and restoration work.

Here was a man who was the biggest celebrity on the planet adored by millions and had mega success - yet in 05 he was potentially facing the rest of his life in prison. You just need to look at the verdict day to see the impact this all had on him. He was done.

If that's how you summarize his last years, I can see why you think the second movie would be bad... Personally, I would follow the scene where the media calls him a has-been with some of this:

physically not looking good either due to excessive surgery and restoration work.

Beauty is a very subjective thing, I found him very handsome. Maybe he was no longer your type, but he still had plenty of young women swooning.

 

[#applehead24]

Beauty is a very subjective thing, I found him very handsome. Maybe he was no longer your type, but he still had plenty of young women swooning.

ME BEING ONE OF THEM!

 

[someplace_else]

I appreciate your input but I’m not looking for a big debate about who’s wrong or who was right - sure there would have been plenty of personal happy times for him in his life during this period (2001 onwards) but overall, this was absolutely his worst decade.

I also agree he suffered throughout his life not just his later years but the strain of those earlier periods certainly caught up with him even more in the 00s.

The high of the 80s were long gone, his reputation was in tatters , he was a joke figure in the media and seen as a has-been who’s popularity was on the decline.

From the Bashir documentary and the baby dangling incident to the trial and then ultimately his death - I could go on and on but I won’t.

Michael in the 00’s was broken, and living in a fantasy world reliant on pain medication whilst dealing with serious mental trauma. Millions in debt and physically not looking good either due to excessive surgery and restoration work.

Here was a man who was the biggest celebrity on the planet adored by millions and had mega success - yet in 05 he was potentially facing the rest of his life in prison. You just need to look at the verdict day to see the impact this all had on him. He was done.

Why do you state your opinions as facts? You are an observer an can build your own opinion, not more, not less. And also it's subjective, not objective in many points... I find it very painful to read when someone just expresses his point of view in such a harsh way and I am sure, I'm not the only one...

That being said...I also agree Michael had to struggle with so many things in life. But I feel like the success and being able to help so many people made it bearable for him. Later on, when the success decreased it became harder and harder for him. And the trial, being accused of something which was the total opposite of who he really was, and having to fight so many years, I think that's what really, really broke his heart. I always feel like the pictures from that time show the pain in his eyes and that something about him has changed...

So, I agree the Biopic could do a great job with showing some insights of what he had to struggle with. Many people don't know that, at least from my experience. And this could change a lot of people's view of Michael, that would be great.

 

[Choupine0099]

If that's how you summarize his last years, I can see why you think the second movie would be bad... Personally, I would follow the scene where the media calls him a has-been with some of this:

Michael being a Has been, was mostly the MEDIA narrative. For the life of me i can understand what He ( Michael) did to them. When you reply a lie long enough people believe it is the truth. Michael was and is a household name, so anything with his name attract attention and if it is slanderous, fan will click or buy because they want to be kept informed about their idol ( and he had legions of fans all over the world, sureway to get a worldwide audience and be quoted) and talk about it in outrage. The haters will buy because they HATE and love this kind of content. The general public will buy because it is MJ and looking at someone downfall makes you feel good about yourself. The goal is to sell so they will allways portray him that way. The most obvious example was the wold music awards 2006. Michael litterally stood on the sceen and people went crazy, apparently since the whole audience knew he will appear no one wanted to listen to artists performance, and Rihana was pratically booed by the audience who grew impatient waiting for MJ to appear. What does the media report the next day in all the cover as the truth? He was booed off stage, and they all shared the same title. And such a blatant lies is easealy disprovable, but the only one that will check are FANS.
I can t imagine what he thought of the headline, i can make you wonder if you are sane or hallucinating, no matter what it is hurtfull. It is like they pick pick pick and when he passed away they remember for a couple of month it was a human being and then they go back right at it. All that because he was different. Very sad.

 

[Blues_Away2023]

If that's how you summarize his last years, I can see why you think the second movie would be bad... Personally, I would follow the scene where the media calls him a has-been with some of this:

Beauty is a very subjective thing, I found him very handsome. Maybe he was no longer your type, but he still had plenty of young women swooning.

It’s the way I experienced that period as a fan and how negative that whole era was.

Michael’s relationship with his fans never diminished, so the hysterical reaction to seeing him during that March 09 London trip is what I would expect - he was still Michael Jackson plus he has just announced the TII shows.

Why do you state your opinions as facts? You are an observer an can build your own opinion, not more, not less. And also it's subjective, not objective in many points... I find it very painful to read when someone just expresses his point of view in such a harsh way and I am sure, I'm not the only one...

That being said...I also agree Michael had to struggle with so many things in life. But I feel like the success and being able to help so many people made it bearable for him. Later on, when the success decreased it became harder and harder for him. And the trial, being accused of something which was the total opposite of who he really was, and having to fight so many years, I think that's what really, really broke his heart. I always feel like the pictures from that time show the pain in his eyes and that something about him has changed...

So, I agree the Biopic could do a great job with showing some insights of what he had to struggle with. Many people don't know that, at least from my experience. And this could change a lot of people's view of Michael, that would be great.

Because my opinion of that 00 era is fact

 

[someplace_else]

Because my opinion of that 00 era is fact

No, it isn't, because

1. you only see a part of what was going on in his life, so you can only make assumptions
2. your opinion about his appearance is subjective, also not an objective fact (and I will never understand why people, especially fans, always have to bring this up, because it's the most irrelevant thing and annoying af)

So, whatever we write here - you, me, everyone - it's an opinion, how we feel about a certain situation. It's only a fact if there is some kind of proof.

 

[Blues_Away2023]

No, it isn't, because

1. you only see a part of what was going on in his life, so you can only make assumptions
2. your opinion about his appearance is subjective, also not an objective fact (and I will never understand why people, especially fans, always have to bring this up, because it's the most irrelevant thing and annoying af)

So, whatever we write here - you, me, everyone - it's an opinion, how we feel about a certain situation. It's only a fact if there is some kind of proof.

Michael’s career hit a low point in the 2000’s - fact.

The Bashir documentary then lead to accusations being made - fact

There was a criminal trial in 2005 that almost destroyed him - fact

He died in 2009 - fact

So , it’s fair to say that the 00’s era was probably his worst

I’m saying no more on the subject, I’m done.

 

[jasmine.uddin]

Michael’s career hit a low point in the 2000’s - fact.

The Bashir documentary then lead to accusations being made - fact

There was a criminal trial in 2005 that almost destroyed him - fact

He died in 2009 - fact

So , it’s fair to say that the 00’s era was probably his worst

I’m saying no more on the subject, I’m done.

While I agree with the above to some extent, I think it's important to have a balanced perspective, I would add:

Fact: the 2005 trial cleared MJ of all wrongdoing.

Fact: MJ mobilised big stars to record a charity single for victims of hurricane Katrina.

Fact: MJ was receiving awards.

Fact: MJ was being published on the front cover of mags.

Fact: MJ had a sell out tour with dates being added to satisfy the huge demand for them.

There is a story of a (much loved) man attempting to overcome hard times, a heroes journey for those who choose to see it, even if it did end tragically. Also, the difficult period in someone's life does not automatically translate as bad content for story telling.

 

[Blues_Away2023]

While I agree with the above to some extent, I think it's important to have a balanced perspective, I would add:

Fact: the 2005 trial cleared MJ of all wrongdoing.

Fact: MJ mobilised big stars to record a charity single for victims of hurricane Katrina.

Fact: MJ was receiving awards.

Fact: MJ was being published on the front cover of mags.

Fact: MJ had a sell out tour with dates being added to satisfy the huge demand for them.

There is a story of a (much loved) man attempting to overcome hard times, a heroes journey for those who choose to see it, even if it did end tragically. Also, the difficult period in someone's life does not automatically translate as bad content for story telling.

I think you will find that he struggled to attract the real big names for that charity single.

To be honest I’m not sure what receiving little accolades and being on the front cover of magazines has to do with my point? He’s Michael Jackson of course he will still have opportunities.

Heck there was a rumour that he was about to headline Live 8 not long after the trial had finished.

Let’s not forget though how much he was ridiculed during this period and labelled a child molester , from music videos to movies he was the butt of the jokes.

There’s no escaping that.

We’re going off topic now but my take from it is that a part two would not be good for cinema.

 

[etoile 37]

I think you will find that he struggled to attract the real big names for that charity single.

Like who? He had Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, NSYNC, Beyonce, Ricky Martin, Shakira, Usher... They were the big names at the time, as I remember.