Antoine Fuqua is a director who understands the weight of a legacy. From my personal favorite film, Bait, to Training Day, to the relentless justice of The Equalizer trilogy, his lens has always been drawn to the intersection of power, morality, and the human spirit. But on April 24, 2026, Fuqua is stepping into his most high-stakes arena yet. With the worldwide release of the Michael Jackson biopic, Michael, just three days away, the director is officially taking on the musical biopic genre. By directing Jaafar Jackson—Michael’s own nephew—and filming on legendary grounds like Hayvenhurst, Fuqua isn’t just making a movie; this project is a labor of love that pays homage to who the real Michael Jackson was.
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“Absolutely, I did,” Fuqua says when I ask if his early background in music videos played a role in his approach to this film. “I definitely drew from my music video days going into this because I understood the language and the performances you’ve got to do to capture the music videos. Michael always said, and he got this from Fred Astaire…Michael makes such passionate expressions, and there are so many details about how he moves, that you have to capture that, and it has to be cinematic.”
Fuqua continued, “I would use special lenses to get down by the socks, and certain lights—or I would get details of the hat…you know how at Motown 25 when he spins the hat? That comes from my music video days, but the interesting thing about that is that you don’t want the music video thing to get in the way. One of the things we learned from those days is to get out of the way. Capture all of it, but get out of your own way, and at the end of that, people want to see Michael Jackson’s moves. I can’t have it be too choppy where you missed the Moonwalk.”
But above all, Michael is a labor of love. Having seen this movie myself, I can assure you that Fuqua successfully captures Michael Jackson the person. There are sequences in the film where Jackson’s loneliness and isolation are captured, highlighting the paradox of being the most famous person on the planet and the loneliest. And, of course, the musical genius Michael Jackson was, as the film features long, meticulously directed scenes of Michael in the studio with Quincy Jones, obsessing over a single bassline or a snare hit. But, above all, humanizing Jackson was the most important thing here.
“Joy,” Fuqua responds when I ask him what he wants people to take away from Michael. “Singing, feeling good…having some fun and remembering that part of Michael, the great artist…the passionate young guy and his eccentricities (he does not mean this in a bad way). Even the animals—that’s not a new thing. Some people think that was a “new” thing with Michael, but he’s always been that way—and a bit lonely. But I want people to feel joy.”
Michael is in theaters April 24.
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Author Bio
Jael Rucker is the founder of Decked Out Magazine. She has previously worked as the Associate Commerce Editor at PureWow, focusing on analytics and trends to pitch stories and optimize articles that build and engage their audience. Her work has also been seen in Footwear News and WWD. Prior to 2024, she was the style and pop culture editor at ONE37pm for over three years, contributing numerous product reviews, brand profiles and fashion trend reports, which included interviewing Steph Curry, Snoop Dogg and more.
