Source : PERTHNOW NEWS
Michael star Jaafar Jackson has revealed his aunt Janet Jackson has her own biopic in the works.
The That’s The Way Love goes hitmaker declined to be involved in the film about her late sibling – who died in 2009 – and now her nephew has explained he thinks she wanted to be omitted from the story so it didn’t cause problems for her own movie plans.
Speaking to GQ Middle East, Jaafar – who will reprise his role as the late King of Pop in a sequel to Michael – said: “I don’t want to speak too early, but Janet has ideas of maybe doing her own film.
“So having someone portrayed in this and then choosing a different actor for her own is just…”
Jaafar also reflected on how emotional his family were when they saw an early screening of footage from Michael.
He said: “I didn’t want to be in the room, but I was like, I should, just because it’s a lot to take in, especially portraying your family member and then having all your family there.
“There were some sniffles, a few cousins getting emotional,” added the actor. “And after it ended, I just got so many hugs and a lot of support… It was a relief, because there was a lot of worry as to how it was going to be done. But once they saw my portrayal, it was a huge relief.”
Michael and Janet’s sister LaToya Jackson, 69, previously explained her younger sibling had “kindly declined” to be involved with director Antoine Fuqua’s movie.
She told Variety about her 59-year-old sister: “I wish everybody was in the movie. (Janet) was asked and she kindly declined so you have to respect her wishes.”
Antoine also spoke about Janet’s absence, stating: “I have so much respect and love for Janet, but you know it’s OK. She’s supportive of Jaafar and that’s what matters.”
Michael also starred Colman Domingo as Joe Jackson and Nia Long as Katherine Jackson.
Jessica Sula played LaToya, while Juliano Valdi portrayed a younger version of Michael.
The project was developed with the involvement of Michael’s estate, with the Thriller hitmaker’s eldest son Prince Jackson serving as executive producer, though his siblings Bigi Jackson and Paris Jackson are not involved.
And Paris publicly criticised the film in a video shared on social media.
She said: “The film panders to a very specific section of my dad’s fandom that still lives in the fantasy. And they’re going to be happy with it.”
The first movie was set to explore the fallout of Michael Jackson’s molestation allegations on his life, with a third act dedicated to the scandal.
However, attorneys for the Thriller hitmaker’s estate discovered a clause in a settlement with Jordan Chandler, one of the singer’s accusers, which barred him from being depicted or mentioned in any film project.
At this stage, it doesn’t appear that Michael 2 could feature that part of Jackson’s life without breaking the terms of the settlement.
However, Lionsgate film chief Adam Fogelson previously insisted there is plenty of the pop icon’s story to tell, including some of his “biggest and most popular” music.
Speaking in a quarterly earnings call in May, he said: “I would say that there is a ton of incredibly entertaining Michael Jackson story, and much of the biggest and most popular parts of his music catalogue that were not touched upon in the first film.
“There are so many other events that happened, even in the time frame of the original movie that weren’t touched upon, so we’re very, very confident that we’ve got an incredibly entertaining movie that will appeal once again to a global audience as the pieces come together.”
