What Happens After Michael? The Truth About Jaafar Jackson’s Future – dw

Jaafar Jackson just achieved what most actors dream of their entire careers. His debut film is the highest-grossing biopic of all time. He’s received standing ovations, Oscar buzz, and his grandmother’s emotional approval. But when Jennifer Hudson asked him about making more music, his answer shocked everyone.

The man who grew up in a Jackson family, surrounded by the greatest musical dynasty in history, said he might be done with music forever. What do you do after you’ve already reached the pinnacle of your art? We expect any music from you in the future? Uh Say yes, please. mean, yes. Well, [laughter] honestly, my my feeling towards music, I always I love music, I love to create, but as an artist after playing uh Michael Jackson, it it my I feel like I experienced the the peak of artistry on that stage.

That I I don’t know, maybe I’m just overthinking it, but I won’t be as satisfied if I go on stage as myself, honestly. But I would like to create for other artists or do film scores. Uh we’ll see. I’m not going to say a hard no, but as of now, I love acting. That’s Oh, why? On The Jennifer Hudson Show, Jaafar opened up about his future.

While he spoke warmly about his love for music, he admitted that portraying his legendary uncle on stage made him feel like he had already reached the highest level of artistic expression. The question lingered. What could possibly follow that? His answer was direct. He’s ready to wind down his singing career despite fans eagerly awaiting a full debut project following his early singles Got Me Singing and Confused.

Acting wasn’t his original plan, but now it’s his focus. Flex some more. What else is he going to do? What roles? that’s really where my my mind and heart is is to to continue acting, to portray characters that you would never expect from me. Mhm. That’s something I I want to completely Are there some role models that you have in this field? I’m not asking to you to tell me anything.

Are there any role models that you have in It’s a surprising choice for someone who grew up at Jackson, but Jaafar revealed he never actually dreamed of performing. In a discussing film interview, he said, “I never dreamed of wanting to be an actor.” He wanted to be a golfer. He played sports.

He didn’t join drama club because he wanted to. He did it because his friends forced him to. Acting only became a possibility when Graham King called. Now, the idea of playing other characters excites him. The roles he wants will surprise everyone. In terms of acting, is that something that you’ve always dreamed of or did that kind of come later? It wasn’t something I I was dreaming of or wanted to do.

At first, growing up I I wanted to be a golfer. I was into sports. I did track. I did basketball. I played tech football. Always interested in the sports. And then, not until around 12 or 13, my father introduced me to music. Even though I grew up with of music, but he kind of gave me a task to learn a Jackson 5 song and perform it in front of him, which When Jennifer Hudson pressed him on whether more music was on the way, Jaafar didn’t leave much room for hope.

He admitted that playing Michael made him feel like he had already reached the highest level of artistic expression. He went from zero acting experience to a billion-dollar performance. That’s a difficult act to follow for anyone. But, Jaafar seems to have accepted that. He’s not trying to top himself.

He’s trying to move forward. He found a new passion and he’s running with it. All the hours, the blood, sweat, and tears that he poured into working in a dance studio, collaborating with people, we had to create a process where you could fast forward him in a matter of like 2 years. One thing is certain, Jaafar isn’t done with Michael Jackson.

Lionsgate has confirmed a sequel is in development, and discussions are progressing exceptionally well. Adam Fogelson, Lionsgate’s motion picture chair, revealed that the sequel won’t follow a linear timeline. Instead, they can go forwards and backwards in the story. This means exploring Jackson’s dangerous and invincible eras, Neverland Ranch, and other untold stories.

The sequel is already 25 to 30% filmed. The King of Pop’s legacy is expanding. movie than I thought. Well, and 25 to 30, that’s 75% of a movie that still has to be complete. That means there’s a lot of room to delve a little deeper, and I’m interested if they’re going to do that. What do you think? Well, if that I I think already what are what are we at? $700 plus? I think for sure they’re probably going to do that.

And um you know, I to be honest, I really like Michael. You know, I I I I don’t remember sitting in a movie theater and tapping my toes the entire time as much as I did in the film. And I think, you know, it’s if anything, the movie you know, people talked about how it was a music video, but for me, the movie was sad in the sense that that Michael Jackson was able to flourish and become the the performer that he was, even though he didn’t have any friends.

So, we This I thought was interesting. We can go forwards and backwards in telling this story. There are many other events that happened even in the time frame of the original movie that weren’t touched upon. The first film ended during the Bad World Tour in 1988. The sequel can cover Jackson’s Super Bowl Halftime performance, now recognized as the NFL’s greatest ever, and his personal life after the Bad era.

Much of the biggest and most popular parts of his music catalog were barely touched. Jaafar is already excited about recreating this Smooth Criminal short film. The story isn’t ending, it’s evolving. He’s ready to tell more of his uncle’s story. Jaafar told Kimmel he wants to portray characters that you’ll never expect me to.

He wants to transform into roles that challenge him. He wants to do it for himself and his family. And he’s fully committed to acting as his new path. His goal now is to build a career in film. Not because he wants to escape his uncle’s legacy, but because he found something he loves. The shy kid who wanted to be a golfer is now a star.

I I I think they’re going to have much more from you. Am I right? Oh, yes. Yeah, I know that’s that’s really where my my mind and heart is is to just to continue acting, to to portray characters that you’ll never expect from me. Mhm. That’s something I I want to do completely. Jaafar Jackson will always be Michael Jackson’s nephew, but he’s becoming something else, too.

An actor, a star in his own right. A man who reached the highest level of artistry in his first film and decided to keep going. He’s done with music for now. He’s focused on roles that will surprise us. And he’s carrying his uncle’s legacy into a new chapter. The King of Pop’s story continues, and so does Jaafar’s. If this story moved you, hit subscribe and drop a comment below.

Next video dropping soon. When preparing for a role, I just like to start off by being as present as I possibly can and surround myself with just complete silence. And I love that feeling of being able to go in any direction and do something unexpected.