Latest in Michael Jackson

Producers of MJ, the upcoming Broadway musical about Michael Jackson that uses the late icon’s hits as its score, has cast the young actor – or actors – who will play the singer in his youthful Jackson Five era: Walter Russell III from Harlem, New York, and Christian Wilson from Norfolk, Virginia, will alternate in…

UPDATED  with full cast: Producers of the upcoming Broadway musical MJ, which begins previews December 6 at Neil Simon Theatre ahead of opening night February 1, has unveiled the full cast joining Myles Frost as Michael Jackson. The show originally had been set to begin previews in mid-2020 before the Broadway…

MJ, the new musical inspired by the life of Michael Jackson, will begin performances on Broadway December 6, with an opening night set for Tuesday, February 1, 2022, at the Neil Simon Theatre, producers announced today. As previously announced, MJ, which will star Tony Award nominee Ephraim Sykes, features a book by…

(UPDATED WITH STATEMENT FROM FIRM) Attorney Howard Weitzman, who had a client list including Michael Jackson, O.J. Simpson, Marlon Brando, Morgan Freeman, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ron Meyer and CAA, has died at the age of 81. The Kinsella Weitzman Iser Kump LLP founding partner passed away Wednesday in his hometown of…

Billionaire businessman Ron Burkle is the new owner of Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch in Santa Barbara County. Burkle, a one-time associate of Jackson and co-founder of the Yucaipa Companies investment firm purchased the 2,700-acre property in Los Olivos, near Santa Barbara for $22 million, according to the Wall Str…

(HBO comment added) UPDATE, 12:23 UPDATE: Over a year after HBO lost out in its attempt to have the $100 million Leaving Neverland lawsuit by the estate of Michael Jackson dismissed and not sent to arbitration, the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals added their voice to the chorus. "An arbitration clause can still bind…

EXCLUSIVE: Leaving Neverland director Dan Reed is embroiled in a legal wrangle with Michael Jackson’s legacy companies as he attempts to shoot a sequel to his explosive, Emmy-winning Channel 4/HBO documentary. Deadline can reveal that Reed has been filming in the Los Angeles Superior Court as Wade Robson and James…

Spike Lee’s latest joint brings Michael Jackson’s moving number “They Don’t Care About Us” to a new era of social justice movements. The Do The Right Thing director dropped a new version of the music video during Lee’s annual Brooklyn Loves Michael Jackson birthday celebration on Saturday. While the new video…

EXCLUSIVE: The Broadway production company behind the upcoming Michael Jackson musical MJ and the stage adaptation of the hit 2000 film Almost Famous has hired The Old Globe Theater’s Travis LeMont Ballenger as producer to help oversee both high-profile projects. Ballenger, most recently the Associate Artistic…

SPOILER ALERT: This review contains details of Beyoncé’s Black Is King film from Disney+ Mere hours after the near presidential funeral for Rep. John Lewis and days after the debut of an in-depth podcast series from Michelle Obama, Beyoncé leap into the arena of Black excellence again tonight with Black Is…

MJ, the Michael Jackson stage musical headed for Broadway, will begin previews next March, an eight-month postponement due to the coronavirus pandemic shutdown. The new dates were announced today by producers Lia Vollack Productions and The Michael Jackson Estate. The world premiere of MJ, featuring Jackson’s music…

Don’t stop til you get enough. BMI and the Michael Jackson estate have extended their long-term deal for rights to the King of Pop’s catalog. This deal continues the relationship between Jackson and the performance rights group that began in 1979. The estate and BMI most recently renewed the deal in 2014. "Michael…