Monday, September 21

• Select Cities Get Advance Screening of Michael Jackson Movie, Tickets on Sale Sunday

  Variety reports that a select group of cities will get a chance to view This Is It on October 27, one day before the movie's scheduled wide release.

  Sony confirmed that things will start with a premiere at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles, followed three hours later by screenings in six other cities around the world. The event at the Nokia theater will also be broadcast via satellite.

  The movie is being directed by High School Musical helmer Kenny Ortega. It draws on more than 80 hours of footage from Michael Jackson's rehearsals for his This Is It tour, which he was preparing for when he died in late June. The movie will have a two-week run, including the advance screenings, and tickets go on sale this coming Sunday.

  
  

  Posted 09/21/2009 by Rich Z

  Related: Michael Jackson | Michael Jackson's: This Is It

Thursday, August 20

• Michael Jackson Movie This Is It Release Date Bumped Forward

  

  Though it was thought the upcoming Michael Jackson movie would need all the time it could get (considering how it's being hastily thrown together since his death), apparently that isn't quite the case. Now titled This Is It, the movie's release date as been pushed up to October 28. Director Kenneth Ortega, whose closest thing to a documentary he's directed before was ... uhh ... High School Musical 3: Senior Year, had better get cracking

  
  

  Posted 08/20/2009 by reelz

  Related: Michael Jackson | Michael Jackson's: This Is It

Tuesday, August 11

• It's Official: The Michael Jackson Movie Is a Go

  A few weeks ago, Sony acquired the rights to some 80 hours of rehearsal footage showing Michael Jackson preparing for his upcoming 10-concert London run. (The "This Is It" concerts were part of a comeback, which Jackson was planning before his death on June 25.) After putting up an initial $50 million dollar bid against Paramount and Universal, Sony finally landed the footage for a $60 million payment to AEG Live and the Michael Jackson estate.

  Variety reports that on Monday, a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge approved the deal. Sony will move forward with This Is It, which has a scheduled release date of October 30. Kenny Ortega, who directed High School Musical, will helm the project, and Randy Phillips and Paul Gongaware of AEG Live will co-produce.

  Select portions of the movie will be in 3-D. Sony Pictures chairman-CEO Michael Lynton spoke briefly about the project:

  This historic recording of the last time [Jackson] sang and danced on stage shows the legendary artist in an incredibly powerful way, with crystal clear images and sound.

  
  

  Posted 08/11/2009 by Rich Z

  Related: Kenny Ortega | Michael Jackson | Michael Jackson's: This Is It

Saturday, August 1

• Michael Jackson Wanted To Make a Spider-Man Movie

  You can file this one in the "News of the Weird" category: Stan "The Man" Lee, the creator of Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Thor, Daredevil, Doctor Strange, and many other classic Marvel Comics characters, said in a recent interview with MTV that recently deceased pop icon Michael Jackson had expressed interest in making a live-action Spider-Man movie before the reins were turned over to director Sam Raimi.

  It was just in the discussion phase. Michael Jackson and I were rather friendly. We had met a number of times. In fact, he came to my house once with his son and I remember my wife took care of his son for about an hour while Michael and I were talking. He was quite a good father.... I had been to his place in Neverland and I really was very fond of Michael Jackson.

  And, he did want — he wanted to do Spider-Man. Now, I'm not sure whether he just wanted to produce it or wanted to play the role, you know. Our conversation never got that far along.

  
  

  Posted 08/01/2009 by BrentJS

  Related: Stan Lee | Michael Jackson | Spider-Man 4

Wednesday, July 22

• Sony Lands Michael Jackson Movie for $60 Million

  

  According to The Hollywood Reporter, Sony has acquired the rights to some 80 hours of rehearsal footage showing Michael Jackson preparing for his upcoming 10-concert London run. The "This Is It" concerts were part of a comeback, which Jackson was planning before his death on June 25. After putting up an initial $50 million dollar bid against Paramount and Universal, Sony finally landed the footage for a $60 million payment to AEG Live.

  Sony is now moving forward with a movie that incorporates various sections of the footage. Philip Anschutz, head of AEG, will serve as one of the producers for the movie, which has a planned release date of Friday, October 30.

  
  

  Posted 07/22/2009 by Rich Z

  Related: Michael Jackson | Michael Jackson's: This Is It

Tuesday, July 21

• Sony Bids $50 Million for Michael Jackson Rehearsal Footage

  

  When Michael Jackson died, he left behind some 80 hours of rehearsal footage that shows him preparing for his upcoming 10-concert London run. The "This Is It" concerts were part of a comeback, which Jackson was planning before his death on June 25. Now it seems plans for a movie are already in the works.

  Several sources, including Variety, EW, and The LA Times, are reporting that Sony has put up $50 million in the hopes of acquiring the rights to the footage and using it in a movie about Jackson's final days.

  Paramount and Universal have also bid on the footage, which is being sold by Philip Anschutz and his Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG). Once a deal is struck, Anschutz would serve as a co-producer on the movie. There's no official word on who will get the footage rights, but sources are speculating that Sony will likely emerge the winner.

  
  

  Posted 07/21/2009 by Rich Z

  Related: Michael Jackson | Michael Jackson's: This Is It

Sunday, June 28

• Oliver!, Michael Jackson's Favorite Childhood Movie, Showing on ReelzChannel

  Mark Lester, the British child star who played the lead in 1968's Oliver!, is also the godfather to Michael Jackson's children. The two met more than 30 years ago. Beyond sharing a childhood in the spotlight, the connection ran deeper — Oliver! was Jackson's favorite movie growing up.

  As chance would have it, we're playing Oliver! (one of Our Favorite Movies) Sunday at 12 PM ET / 9 AM PT. This musical adaptation of Charles Dickens' classic tale won numerous awards, including five Oscars.

  
  

  Posted 06/28/2009 by reelz

  Related: Mark Lester | Michael Jackson | Oliver!

Thursday, June 25

• Michael Jackson Dead at 50

  In the second sad celebrity news of the day, Michael Jackson suffered cardiac arrest this afternoon, reportedly dying a short time later. The 50-year-old singer and dancer starred in six feature movies, most notably The Wiz. Here is the trailer for that 1978 classic, which was nominated for four Oscars.

  
  

  Posted 06/25/2009 by reelz

  Related: Michael Jackson | The Wiz