The movie ‘Michael‘ is finally here. With rewrites, reshoots and family drama, the Jackson family descended on Gary, Indiana — back where they started from — for a world premiere like no other. Gary has no working film theater, yet the city and the studio found a way to make sure that some of the first people to see the film would be native residents of Gary.
N’DIGO was there, and we caught up with brothers Jackie and Marlon, producer Graham King, Gary native filmmaker Deon Taylor, and the nephew playing Michael, Jaafar Jackson.
It was clear in talking to them all that everyone understood the importance of coming back to Gary. Additionally, it was an opportunity to profile Jaafar in his first major acting role.
Reggie Ponder: From the producing side, what did it mean to you to bring this film back to Gary for its premiere?
Graham King: From the first week of starting development on this film, I said to my team, we gotta kick things off in Gary, Indiana, and we are here tonight. So it’s a very surreal moment to be here and to be with these superstars.
Casting Michael Jackson is about as high-stakes as it gets. How did Jaafar come into the picture, and when did you know he was the right choice?
Graham King: Jaafar was—I always go to a very spiritual place making these films. I think Michael was driving this train and he kind of led me into meeting Jaafar. Ten minutes into meeting him, I asked if he was auditioning to play the role and he said, “No, I’m not an actor.” And here we are tonight with Jaafar playing Michael. I’m so proud of him.
You surrounded him with a heavyweight cast. What were you looking for in that ensemble?
Graham King: To have a stellar cast of Colman Domingo and Nia Long and Miles Teller is just incredible. It’s a producer’s dream.
Antoine Fuqua couldn’t be here, but his fingerprint is all over this film. How would you describe his impact?
Graham King: Antoine—he’s my partner all the way down the line on this. I’m so sad that he can’t be here tonight, but he’s incredible and I’m so proud of him and the job that he’s done, and I think the audience are gonna see that in the next week or two.
Deon, you came in on a red eye to be here. Why was it so important to show up for this premiere?
Deon Taylor: I’m from Gary, Indiana, man. I went to this school right here (West Side Leadership Academy). So ain’t nowhere in the world I wasn’t finna fly out here on the red eye and be here to support Mayor Eddie Melton, the Jacksons, the Gary International Black Film Festival, the whole movement, man. I had to be here to be a part of it.
As a director yourself, talk a bit about the director for this film, Antoine Fuqua.
Deon Taylor: More importantly, I’m here to support Antoine Fuqua, one of our most legendary Black filmmakers to ever touch a camera. So I wanted to make sure I was here for that!
You called the Jacksons “your family.” What does that mean for somebody who grew up here?
Deon Taylor: We were born and raised on these people, man. My momma, my momma’s mama—this is it! You know, 2300 Jackson Street. I lived on Johnson Street, I used to walk by that house. So I’m just excited to be here and to see the city that’s electric right now.
Jackie, you’ve been on stage with Michael your entire life. What was it like the first time you watched Jaafar step into that space on screen?
Jackie Jackson: Yeah, absolutely. Jaafar always had it since he was a little kid dancing around the house, playing the piano and singing. And when I watch the film, it’s something—I’m watching Michael, and I realize it’s not Michael. It’s Jaafar. He’s incredible, man. It brings tears to my eyes to see. I cry every time. I tear up every time.
When you see your nephew embody your brother that way, what goes through your mind about the journey you and your brothers have been on?
Jackie Jackson: We had so many fans around the world and people loved us. Motown did a great, great job with us. I give them a lot of credit too because if it weren’t for them, we wouldn’t be where we are today—gave us great songs. And then we started writing our own music ourselves. But it’s a great ride, man.
Jaafar, this is your first film role, and it’s not just any character — it’s your uncle, Michael Jackson. At what point did you feel like you’d moved beyond learning the part and actually started to envelop his essence?
Jaafar Jackson: Let’s start with a lot of repetition, if I’m speaking specifically on the moves. But as far as his mannerisms and voice work and just his essence, that really came with living in it for many hours or many days at Havenhurst where he lived and really immersing myself in his world, which was listening to his music or studying his footage, rehearsing in the same dance room where he would rehearse. I really wanted to make sure I captured every little nuance so people felt him on the screen.
You’ve said you’d never acted before this. What did your preparation actually look like once you signed on?
Jaafar Jackson: The first six to eight months of the preparation for this, I really dived into what is acting, and that was a whole new thing for me cause I’ve never acted before. So I read books on acting. I read Stanislavski, Stella Adler, Uta Hagen and Sanford Meisner—there were so many different masters who broke down what acting is. I also had an incredible coach named Angela Gibbs and a couple other coaches that really helped me and shaped certain tools that I had to use.
When you finally got to set and started working with Colman Domingo, Nia Long, Miles Teller and the rest of the cast, did that change the way you approached scenes?
Jaafar Jackson: Just being in a scene, having a scene partner like Colman Domingo or Nia Long or Miles Teller—when you’re working with great actors, it makes your job even easier because it’s natural, you’re not forcing anything. So I really wanted to work hard to make sure I knew the fundamentals of what acting is and how to prepare properly for that.
After all the preparation and the work you put into this, what do you hope people carry with them when they leave the theater?
Jaafar Jackson: I really wanted to make sure I captured every little nuance so people felt him on the screen.
And from the family’s side, what do you hope people remember as they watch that performance?
Marlon Jackson: One of the things I want the people to understand is that we are no different than they are. We are family. We go through trials and tribulations like they do. Our family’s no different. My father saw something in us. The Lord blessed us with a musical gift, and I tell people I understand that blessing that he bestowed on this family is to unite the world together as one through your music, which is what we did.
“Michael” is currently in theaters NOW!
