News

Johnny Depp to Play Michael Jackson in Biopic?

4:47 p.m. · July 1, 2009 · by Kali Holloway

Almost as soon as Michael Jackson's death hit the wire, a fair amount of us wondered when the first biopic would be announced, so news that a Hollywood studio has a Jackson project in the works is no surprise. What might throw you for a loop, though, is who's rumored to be up for the main role: Johnny Depp. Contact Music cites an "insider" (not to be confused with a "source") who claims that "a number of offers [are] being drawn up with a variety of angles to tell Michael's incredible life story" and that among the actors being considered is "Johnny Depp. It all depends on how his family decides to honor him."

But wait -- there's more! According to the site, Jamie Foxx' name is also being bandied about -- to play Jackson in the early, Pre-Bad days. It's a little confusing, but no more so than the man being depicted was in real life.

And of course, the difference between what's true and what's made up to sell papers and garner site hits is hard to know in this supersaturated, post-Michael Jackson world. Johnny Depp, for his part, maintains that it's all fabricated, saying, "No no no, I never ever thought of playing Michael Jackson in a film. I think if anyone should play Michael Jackson in a film it should've been Michael Jackson." [Contact Music]