‘Michael’s’ Jaafar Jackson Rehearsing ‘Bad’ Compared to the Actual 1988 Performance Is Oscar-Worthy, Fans Are Saying

Recreating a legendary live performance on camera is one of the hardest tricks a biopic can attempt, since audiences already carry the real thing in their memory. Get it even slightly wrong, and the illusion collapses instantly.

That challenge sat at the heart of ‘Michael,’ Antoine Fuqua’s biopic covering the King of Pop’s rise from the Jackson 5 to global superstardom, and nowhere was it tested more than in the film’s climactic ‘Bad’ sequence. Fans have spent months picking apart every frame of that recreation against the real 1988 concert footage.

A newly circulated clip is now fueling that comparison all over again, placing rehearsal footage of Jaafar Jackson working through the ‘Bad’ choreography directly alongside Michael Jackson’s actual 1988 performance of the song. The side-by-side comparison has been framed by fans online as proof that any awards recognition heading Jaafar’s way is fully earned.

That framing lines up with what has actually been happening throughout the year. The Hollywood Creative Alliance named Jaafar the winner of Best Actor at the 2026 Astra Midseason Movie Awards, beating out a field that included Chiwetel Ejiofor, Leo Woodall, Ralph Fiennes, Robert Pattinson and Ryan Gosling, who finished as runner up.

The recreated ‘Bad’ performance itself carries extra weight within that awards conversation. Fuqua chose to film the Wembley Stadium version of the concert on the very first day of production, according to NME, betting that tackling one of the trickiest sequences early would build Jaafar’s confidence heading into the rest of the shoot.

That gamble appears to have paid off in front of the camera as well as the crowd. Fuqua described the atmosphere on set to CinemaBlend, saying Jaafar walked out on stage in front of more than 400 extras and the moment the music started it genuinely felt like the room had been transported into a real concert, with extras screaming and reacting without ever being cued to do so.

Critics have taken notice of that same physical command in the finished film. Variety chief film critic Owen Gleiberman wrote in his review that Jackson gets Michael’s tentative, high, sugary voice just right while also letting the audience see how that voice was built, a line Variety cited as part of its broader case for Jackson’s Oscar prospects.

The ‘Bad’ sequence specifically has been singled out as the clearest evidence of that command. Variety’s own awards coverage pointed to the performance as demonstrating a mastery of physicality and presence that suggests a genuine breakout moment, even amid a more mixed critical reception for the film as a whole.

That mixed reception has not slowed the awards conversation down. Despite a 38 percent Rotten Tomatoes score, industry watchers have continued treating ‘Michael’ as viable for major categories, pointing to ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ as a precedent for how a divisive biopic can still translate into acting nominations and wins.

With the Astra win already in hand and comparison clips like this new rehearsal footage continuing to circulate widely, the pressure on Jaafar Jackson’s Oscar case seems to be building rather than fading. Whether that momentum survives a crowded fall campaign season remains to be seen, but the ‘Bad’ sequence keeps giving voters and fans alike fresh reasons to pay attention.

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