Spike Lee Defends “Michael” Biopic Amid Criticism Over Exclusion of Child Abuse Allegations
Spike Lee recently defended the film “Michael” in an interview with CNN, responding to criticism about what the movie leaves out. The biopic about Michael Jackson has been questioned by some viewers for not including details about the child sexual abuse allegations made against the singer later in his life.
Lee said he understands the debate, but he believes the criticism misses the point of the movie’s story. He explained that the film only covers Jackson’s life up to 1988, which is before any of the accusations became public in 1993. Because of that, he said those events are not part of the film’s timeline.
“First of all, if you’re a movie critic, and you’re complaining about the stuff— all this other stuff— but the movie ends at ‘88. The stuff you’re talking about, accusations, happen [later]. So you’re critiquing the film on something that you want in, but it doesn’t work in the timeline of the film. But people showed up. Worldwide, people showed their love.”
Lee also spoke about his personal connection to Jackson during the interview. He said he misses both Michael Jackson and Prince, calling them close friends and people he worked with in the past. He added, “I miss Mike. I miss Prince. I mean, these are my brothers. I worked with both of them. Both beautiful, beautiful people.”
The film originally included more of Jackson’s later life, including the fallout from the first abuse allegation. However, the Jackson estate reportedly used a legal clause connected to a settlement with Jordan Chandler to prevent him from being shown or mentioned in the film. Because of that, the filmmakers had to change the story and focus more on Jackson’s relationship with his father instead.
The movie “Michael” has still performed strongly at the box office. It earned about 97.5 million dollars in the United States on its opening weekend and has gone on to make over 423 million dollars worldwide, according to box office figures reported in industry coverage.
Lee’s connection to Jackson also goes back many years. He directed the music video for “They Don’t Care About Us” in 1996 and later worked on documentaries about Jackson’s life and career, including “Bad 25” in 2012 and “Michael Jackson’s Journey from Motown to Off the Wall” in 2016.
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