Following the massive global success of Michael, a sequel based on the life and career of Michael Jackson is now officially in development.
According to Variety, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson confirmed during the studio's recent quarterly earnings call that plans for a follow-up film are already progressing well.
Fogelson said the studio believes there are still many major moments from Jackson's life and music career left unexplored.
“There is a ton of incredibly entertaining Michael Jackson story, and much of the biggest and most popular parts of his music catalogue that were not touched upon in the first film," Fogelson said. "There are so many other events that happened, even in the time frame of the original movie that weren't touched upon, so we're very, very confident that we've got an incredibly entertaining movie that will appeal once again to a global audience."
Fogelson also suggested that the sequel may not continue the story in a simple chronological order. Instead, the filmmakers could move back and forth between different periods of Jackson's life. “We can go forwards and backwards in telling this story,” he said.
Sequel Shooting In Progress
One of the biggest updates shared during the call was that part of the sequel may already have been filmed.
Fogelson revealed that nearly “25 to 30% of a second movie had already been shot during production of the original film”. According to him, using that footage again could also help reduce future production costs.
ALSO READ: Tom Hardy Reportedly Fired From MobLand Season 3 After Fallout With Producers
Released in April, Michael turned into a major box office success worldwide. The film has reportedly earned more than $715 million globally so far.
The first movie ends with Jackson's famous Wembley Stadium performance during his 1988 Bad tour.
Controversy Remains
Despite its commercial success, the film's production faced controversy because of long-standing child sexual abuse allegations connected to Jackson.
According to earlier reports, parts of the original movie had to be reworked after producers realised legal agreements related to accuser Jordan Chandler restricted references to him in the film.
At the moment, Lionsgate has not confirmed whether the sequel will address those allegations directly. The studio has also not announced a release date or official plot details for the second movie.
ALSO READ: OTT Releases This Weekend: From Dhurandhar, System To SkyMed Season 4 — Movies, Series To Watch
Essential Business Intelligence, Continuous LIVE TV, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.