Arguably no pop star in living memory can rival Michael Jackson in terms of popularity, influence, or controversy — and the filmmakers behind the upcoming musical biopic “Michael” are learning the harshest lesson imaginable about that last part. Helmed by the action director best known for “Training Day” and the “Equalizer” trilogy, Antoine Fuqua, and written by veteran scribe John Logan (“Gladiator,” “The Aviator,” “Skyfall”), the drama has spared no expense on star power in an attempt to capture the same lightning bolt that turned “Bohemian Rhapsody” into a runaway hit back in 2018. In addition to Miles Teller, the cast includes newly-minted Best Actor Oscar nominee Colman Domingo, Laura Harrier, and even Jackson’s nephew Jaafar Jackson in his feature film debut as the King of Pop. The Jackson biopic has been in the works since at least 2019 and, with filming completed, the creative team was in the midst of post production when, speaking of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” they hit a snag. And when I say a “snag,” I mean the worst possible setback that could ever affect a blockbuster of this size.

Matthew Belloni, the former editor of The Hollywood Reporter who went on to create his own newsletter called Puck, has released a bombshell new report revealing the turmoil that has engulfed the making of “Michael.” Apparently, Fuqua and his team have had to go back to the drawing board as a result of a legal snafu that, somehow, nobody at Jackson’s estate (which approved of the script and the use of Jackson’s actual music) caught wind of until the last moment. This involves the decision to address the well-known sexual abuse and pedophilia allegations surrounding Jackson that eventually led to his prosecution (though not conviction) in 2005. As it turns out, the film was never legally allowed to dramatize the alleged victim Jordan Chandler or his family in the first place.

Unbelievably, this meant that the entire final act has had to undergo extensive reshoots, delaying the film’s release by at least six months and almost certainly costing someone (or multiple someones) their job. Read on for all the details of what’s all but certain to be the wildest story of 2025.

Of all the reasons to make a Michael Jackson biopic, the ability to tell the famous celebrity’s story while using all of his beloved songs would be at the top of that list. That, of course, requires the approval of Jackson’s family estate, which has carefully guarded the rights to such productions and almost certainly required full script approval before signing off on “Michael.” As dubious as that may be for those concerned that the movie could potentially whitewash what was, in reality, an awfully complicated legacy, the pressing matter that has derailed the production has to do with someone failing to cross all their I’s and dotting their T’s while looking over the screenplay.

As detailed in the Puck report, that “someone” would be John Branca, the executor of the Jackson estate (and who is actually appearing in the biopic, played by actor Miles Teller). According to Belloni, “Michael” producer Graham King was the profoundly unlucky soul who had to pick up the phone as the film was nearing the finish line and receive the news from Branca that the movie could not be released in its current form. (The filmmakers are described as having been “blindsided” by the news.) To quote directly from the source article:

“Years before signing off on the ‘Michael’ movie with the Chandlers featured in the script, Jackson’s team agreed they would never include the family in any such movie. Yes, according to two sources, there’s a signed agreement with the Chandlers prohibiting any dramatization of them or their stories. Ouch. That deal, which was overlooked by the estate during the vetting of the script, has now rendered the planned storyline and several key scenes that were shot unusable.”

Mind you, this came after Lionsgate already rolled out the red carpet for “Michael” through early looks at CinemaCon in 2024 and talked up the wow factor involved in Jackson’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, perfectly embodying the looks and physicality of his late uncle. The film was originally set for release in April of this year, but Deadline reported back in November of last year that the biopic had been delayed until October 2025. Now we know exactly why that happened.

Looming large over all of this unforeseen drama, of course, is when — or whether — “Michael” will be able to be released in its new and updated form. Reshoots are a fairly widespread practice throughout the industry, but rarely on such a scale. “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” infamously endured a rocky production as Tony Gilroy stepped in for director Gareth Edwards in order to rework large parts of the final act and, as alluded to earlier, “Bohemian Rhapsody” survived its original director Bryan Singer getting fired from production mid-filming on the way to becoming a nearly billion-dollar hit at the box office. At the very least, there is recent precedent for what the cast and crew of “Michael” are now experiencing … but it’s an open-ended question as to whether this will ever actually make it to the finish line.

While all the headlines will shine a light on the final act readjustments, Belloni’s reporting actually shows that this is an even larger issue. As he explained:

“The [‘Michael’] script begins and ends during the 1993 investigation into statements about Jackson’s anatomy made by Jordan Chandler, the then-13-year-old boy whose molestation claim led to worldwide headlines and an eventual $20 million settlement. The script depicts Jackson as the naïve victim of the money-grubbing Chandlers, whose unfounded claims force Jackson to endure ridicule and persecution until he ultimately settles, his resolve and reputation forever in tatters.”

As troubling (and problematic) as that narrative framing may be, it also means that the filmmakers will have to rework much of the first (and likely middle) act as well. There’s a famous saying in screenwriting circles that third act problems are actually first act problems, and that may never feel more relevant than it does here. As of now, Fuqua and Logan have been rewriting and revising the script before handing it over to Lionsgate as early as this week, according to Puck. With the Jackson estate footing the bill for reshoots, word is the creative team is optimistic they can salvage this mess. Whether that actually happens or not is anyone’s guess.

“Michael” is currently scheduled to release on October 3, 2025.