‘I wanted to prove to myself…I can do this’

Jaafar Jackson opens up about his expertise portraying the King of Pop within the upcoming Michael Jackson biopic.

“I knew how challenging this would be to take on playing Michael Jackson, and it was not easy. Definitely wasn’t,” he says in Becoming Michaela featurette launched by Universal Pictures UK.

“I love challenges and I wanted to prove to myself, my family and the filmmakers that I, I can do this,” he says, noting he rehearsed “for hours and hours upon hours until one single move was right” and at instances danced “until my feet would bleed or them go numb.”

“There’s so many times I would wake up sore [and] be like, ‘Should I go rehear? Should I just take a break and let the body relax?’ Then the other part of me would be like, ‘No what would Michael do?'” he remembers.

When it was go time and he was in full costume, Jaafar says, “I had a couple moments to myself just saying like, ‘Wow. I’m really here. There’s no going back. It’s time to go out there and put on the best show ever.'”

Becoming Michaelnow out there on YouTube, additionally options behind-the-scenes moments of Jaafar on set practising the choreography and contains interviews with Michael director Antoine Fuqua and producer Graham King.

Michael will give followers a front-row seat to the King of Pop’s life and profession. Nia Long, Laura Harrier, Juliano Krue Valdi, Miles Teller and Colman Domingo additionally star.

Early Access screenings in IMAX and Dolby will happen April 22; tickets can be found on advance ticket websites. The movie will then premiere April 24 in theaters nationwide, with tickets happening sale March 26.