It was a family affair as Jafaar Jackson, who stars in the title role of the upcoming film Michael, and his famous family attended a screening of the film in the Jackson’s hometown on April 13.
Jafaar, who is Jermaine Jackson‘s son, joined his father, cousin Prince and uncles Jackie and Marlon Jackson at the Mark Spencer Auditorium at West Side Leadership Academy in Gary, Indiana, to watch the latest Michael Jackson biopic.
With the new film, there are moments you might believe that you’re watching the King of Pop himself. Jafaar’s title role takes “keeping it in the family” to a whole new level as he delivers an uncanny replication of his late uncle.
He didn’t take the task lightly.
“Everything,” Jafaar declared to EBONY when asked what mattered most to nail his performance. “I wanted to bring Michael’s essence, most importantly, in his mannerisms, his voice, his ability to dance, and have it come across in a way that’s very believable.”
That meant letting go of any conscious effort to imitate the King of Pop.
“I had to find my own truth in it and my own expression to make sure I’m feeling it in that moment. I never wanted to feel like I’m faking something—from a move or a vocal or one little mannerism,” he shared, leaving the overthinking behind for Antoine Fuqua’s directorial take on Michael’s life.
“I didn’t want to be consciously aware of what I was doing. I wanted to be in that—in a flow state—and that just came with a lot of repetition and preparation.”
You can see that work in some of the film’s biggest moments, from Michael Jackson’s “Bad” video shoot to the era-defining “Thriller” video, which is still replicated today.
Ask Jaafar to pick a favorite, and the answer changes depending on the day.
“Right now, I’d say it’s between recreating the ‘Thriller” video or his ‘Billie Jean’ performance at Motown 25.”
We can totally understand why it’s a tough call, especially when stepping into moments that have defined his family legacy.
Michael opens in theaters on April 24.