A new Michael Jackson biopic, Michael, is currently slated for release on October 3 of this year. According to Screen Rant, however, the production has run into some serious issues as the third act has been "deemed legally unusable." The outlet reports that the film focuses on the child sex abuse allegations the performer was hit with in 1993. That year, Evan Chandler accused him of assaulting his 13-year-old son, Jordan.
These allegations were investigated, and eventually, Jackson and the Chandlers reached a financial settlement. Puck journalist Matt Belloni reports that the film, “depicts Jackson as the naïve victim of the money-grubbing Chandlers." The third act of the film depicts Jackson's legal team debating whether or not to settle with the Chandlers. At one point, they reportedly play a recording where Evan Chandler says he'll use the allegations to ruin Jackson's career.
Michael Jackson's Estate Reportedly Overlooked Contract With Evan Chandler
Screen Rant notes, however, that Jackson's estate signed a contract with Evan Chandler years before Michael went into production. Allegedly, this prevents them from depicting him or his family members in a film. Apparently, this was overlooked when they started working on Michael.
Now, director Antoine Fuqua, producer Graham King, and screenwriter John Logan are reportedly working on a new script. The outlet says they're also planning a schedule of reshoots to present to Universal. If Universal does not agree to these changes, the studio could pull out of the project entirely.
