Jaafar Jackson, the nephew of late Michael Jackson, will be playing his uncle in a new biopic titled ‘Michael,’ which tells the story of the King of Pop’s complicated life. The news was revealed by director Antoine Fuqua on Instagram, sharing a photo of Jaafar performing one of Michael’s signature moves.
The Lionsgate film has a script written by John Logan and will be produced by none other than Graham King – the same producer that brought us Bohemian Rhapsody. John Branca and John McClain, the co-executors of Michael’s estate, will co-produce the drama alongside King. It’s supposed to be a hit!
Up until January 30th, the film didn’t have anyone starring as Michael, but they couldn’t have chosen a better portrayer than Jaafar. The 26-year-old has a lot of Michael’s traits, including an incredible voice and talented dance moves. As the late artist’s nephew, he also knows what it’s like to bear the family name.
“Proud to announce @jaafarjackson as Michael — the motion picture event that explores the journey of the man who became the King of Pop. Coming soon,” said film director Antoine Fuqua in his Instagram post on Jan. 30. The photo was shot by Jourdynn Jackson, the younger brother of Jaafar Jackson.
Jaafar also posted the photo to his own Instagram. “I’m humbled and honored to bring my Uncle Michael’s story to life. To all the fans all over the world, I’ll see you soon,” he wrote. It was Jaafar’s first post on Instagram, garnering more than 57,000 likes in 11 hours. He already has 136,000 followers.
Fuqua opened up about watching Jaafar portray MJ in a press release, which was published on Monday. “It’s incredibly exciting to watch Jaafar bring Michael to life. There was such a spiritual connection when I first met Jaafar, who has a natural ability to emulate Michael and such a great chemistry with the camera.”
‘Michael’ is just one of the many big-time projects Fuqua has brought or helped bring to life. Some of his other notable projects include Training Day, Tears of the Sun, King Arthur, Brooklyn’s Finest, The Equalizer, The Equalizer 2, The Equalizer 3, and Emancipation. He has also done several documentaries.
Jaafar Jackson Has a Music Career of His Own
As for Jaafar Jackson, he’s already building up a music career of his own – following in his uncle’s footsteps. His talented voice and smooth dance moves are reminiscent of the late pop artist, which makes us excited for what he has in store for everyone in the future. He has already released one music video.
On June 28, 2019, Jackson’s music video for ‘Got Me Singing’ was released by VEVO on YouTube. It appears the video was shot in the same area (Brazil) as his Uncle’s ‘They Don’t Care About Us’ music video. The song has garnered nearly 8.5 million views and more than 203,000 likes on YouTube.
While that’s a lot of attention for a 26-year-old, Jaafar Jackson doesn’t step out in the spotlight too often. In fact, he has a humbled and shy aurora about him – again, reminiscent of a younger Michael. It should serve him well in the biopic, allowing him to bring his Uncle’s story to life for audiences around the world.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Paris Jackson Says She Still Has ‘Standard PTSD’ From Paparazzi Following Michael Jackson
Jaafar Jackson is the older son of Jermaine Jackson and Alejandra Genevieve Oaziaza – they also share a younger son, Jourdynn. Oaziaza is also the mother of two children with Randy Jackson, the younger brother of Jermaine and Michael. Now, Jafaar has the family in the spotlight once again.