The Jacksons are Moved to Tears by This Jaafar Behind the Scenes Moments… -dw

You’re actually also singing while you’re performing that. Am I right? Because I heard that scream, and that’s yours. [laughter] Who’s that? Every time I would rehearse, I would always sing out loud. Some of those tests went a bit extreme. They thought, “Oh, we can do a lot and make him look really a lot like Michael.

” I saw an article where it said that Graham King got the rights to tell Michael’s story. Yeah. And I forgot where I saw it. It was online somewhere. My first thought was, “Who are they going to get to play Michael?” And honestly, I didn’t think of myself. I I was like, “This is going to be really interesting.

” When the first behind-the-scenes clips of Jaafar Jackson preparing to play Michael Jackson began appearing online, fans immediately noticed one thing. This was not someone simply copying Michael’s dance moves. Jaafar was completely becoming him. Every step, every turn, every look, and every movement showed just how much work had gone into bringing the King of Pop back to life.

And he’s kind of looking at me like he asked me, “Do you Have you ever acted before?” I said, “Never. I’ve never wanted to be an actor.” Initially told him, you know, I I I grew up wanting to play golf. I got into music. [laughter] It definitely wasn’t anything Michael-related, but I grew up loving obviously watching Michael’s videos and and studying his moves and things like that, but fast forward to 6 months in, he got me a coach that I started to work on a lot of scenes of from other films, and

it was a multi-year process. It wasn’t just a traditional audition. I I definitely had to to earn the role for a 2-year process, really. But what many people don’t know is that this transformation started long before the cameras ever rolled. Before Jaafar officially got the role, the The process was kept a complete secret.

Very few people even knew a Michael Jackson movie was in development. According to those involved with the project, the search for the perfect actor lasted for years. They needed someone who could dance, sing, move, and most importantly, capture Michael’s spirit. So many times I would wake up sore, like, should I go rehearse? Should I just take a break and let the body relax? Then another part of my mind would be like, no, what would Michael do? Just do it again.

Yeah, I miss that. Yeah, yeah. Thriller is obviously this iconic moment and our the culture in our culture. And you guys recreated their dance on the street where it actually happened. Oh, yeah. No, we were there Wait, that’s you? [laughter] That’s me. OH MY GOSH. We were there from sun uh sunset to sunrise for two nights, all through the night shooting.

Dancing all night long? All night long on cement, which was uh [laughter] I heard your foot your feet bled during some of this. There was some moments uh yeah, they were they were they would go numb cuz it was also freezing, but [laughter] to be in that actual location and to see the zombies around and I There were so many times I I couldn’t really believe that I was recreating the one of the most iconic or the most iconic video of all time and to just be in the same space where Michael was was

uh I had to really tell myself I I’m really here. Wow, it’s it’s incredible. Being Michael’s nephew was not enough. Jaafar had to earn the role just like everyone else. For nearly 2 years, everything happened behind closed doors. Jaafar quietly trained while the public knew almost nothing.

He spent countless hours studying old concert videos, music videos, interviews, and rehearsal tapes. Every movement had to feel natural. Every performance had to look real. He wasn’t trying to imitate Michael. He was trying to understand how Michael moved and why he moved that way. It was really a surreal spiritual moment at the same time.

You know, spending all those hours in the makeup chair and and thanks to the incredible Bill Corso who’s the head of makeup on the film. Just that process of seeing me slowly transform into Michael was it was emotional. My first reaction was it was day one and I was doing the bad tour.

I was doing the bad performance. That’s your first That was day one of production. Oh my god. [laughter] Yeah. Yeah, we did all the performances the first two weeks of shooting. One of the biggest challenges was learning Michael’s famous dance style. At first, many people thought it would come easily because Jaafar is part of the Jackson family.

But the reality was very different. Michael’s dancing looks effortless on stage, but behind the scenes it requires incredible control, balance, and endurance. Jaafar [snorts] had to practice the same moves over and over until they became second nature. The famous moonwalk was only the beginning.

Michael’s spins, toe stands, sharp turns, fast footwork, and smooth transitions all demanded perfect timing. I never dreamed to be an actor or even thought of playing him, but I knew it was a calling. Embodying Michael, I really had to earn the role and prove to the filmmakers that I was capable of of becoming Michael.

I’d go down and I’d rehearse and and when I take a break I go watch film. And we had to do what we had to do to find the best in the world. He took it to a level that none of us thought he could take it to. That’s part of the magic of Jaafar. He has the desire, like Michael, to be THE BEST. CUT. Double up. Let’s go.

Let’s do it. That’s amazing. Some dance sessions lasted for hours without long breaks. If one [snorts] move wasn’t perfect, they simply repeated it again and again. Then came one of Michael’s most recognizable accessories, the fedora hat. Fans often see Michael tossing the hat effortlessly during performances, making it look easy.

But behind the scenes, Jaafar had to practice every hat movement until it became automatic. Even wearing the fedora correctly affected his posture and head movements. Every small detail mattered because Michael made even the simplest actions look iconic. The rehearsals became even more demanding as filming continued.

Dancing for hours every day took a serious toll on Jaafar’s body. Reports from the production revealed that his feet became sore after constant practice. Long rehearsal days left him with painful blisters and wounds that had to heal before the next training session. The auditioning process was was very, very challenging, but it really helped me to shape what I needed to be for going into into Michael.

You got to stay for the ending. That’s the best part. mother. Good night, mother. Good night. Some days he pushed through the pain simply because the performance had to keep improving. Michael himself often rehearsed until his feet hurt, and in many ways Jaafar found himself experiencing the very same thing.

The physical pain became part of understanding what Michael went through during his career. Every spin, every jump, and every powerful dance sequence required discipline that most fans never get to see. How many hours were put into just that number? Oof, to I don’t know hours, but I know I’ll dedicate I don’t know I don’t want to add it all right now, but I would do 4 to 6 hours of rehearsal every day uh Monday through Friday, sometimes when even on the weekends, but a month straight solid, but I would prep

prior to that with other songs before I I knew we’re going to do that cuz songs were shuffling. That’s a very difficult number to do to perform. Yeah, that’s the most I would say outside of Billy Jean. One of the biggest parts of the preparation was recreating the legendary Billy Jean performance.

This wasn’t simply about wearing the famous black jacket, white glove, and fedora. The team carefully studied every moment of the original performance. The lighting, body language, facial expressions, pauses, and timing all had to match as closely as possible.

Jaafar reportedly watched Michael perform Billy Jean countless times. He paid attention to how Michael walked onto the stage, how he paused before the music started. You know what I’m after, Mr. Breaker? Sure. You want to be the biggest star in the world. You help make that happen? Yes.

How? Because I believe there’s no one like you, and there never will be. The costume fittings also became an important part of the transformation. Putting on Michael’s famous outfits helped Jaafar understand how they affected his movements. The jackets, shoes, hats, and stage costumes were recreated with incredible attention to detail, allowing him to feel closer to the performances fans know so well.

When we walked, you know, going into it, I didn’t think it would be that hard. I knew it would be somewhat challenging, but not as hard as I it came out to be. The flooring is important, the shoes you’re wearing, and that was something new for me, being able to dance in loafers.

And the more I studied his movements and looked at footage, it seemed as if it was a trick, illusion in in that sense. He was such a fan of that, of having that element of magic within a performance, to trick the audience to think it’s something unusual going on. I felt that love for Michael every day on set, from the crew and the cast.

Everybody had that love and wanted to put all their heart and soul into it. I believe that music we can change the world. Look, Jaafar, you can see how much he cares. That’s what makes him so special. And whatever that spirit of Michael he’s bringing is present, and everyone on the team can feel it.

The filmmakers also worked hard to recreate Michael’s rehearsal environment. Instead of focusing only on finished performances, they wanted to show the hours of preparation that happened before every concert. Michael was known as a perfectionist who repeated songs again and again until every musician, dancer, and camera angle was exactly right.

Jaafar had to experience that same level of dedication while filming. Behind the scenes, choreographers constantly corrected the smallest mistakes. Sometimes it wasn’t about dancing better, it was about moving exactly like Michael. The angle of a hand, the bend of a knee, the timing of a head turn, or even the way Michael stood still between dance moves, all became part of the training.