Michael Jackson's Halloween is a one-hour animated television special that premiered on CBS on October 27, 2017.[1][2] It was produced by Splash Entertainment.
The special was produced in collaboration with the Michael Jackson estate.[2] John Branca and John MacClain, co-executors of the Estate of Michael Jackson, serve as executive producers. It is produced by Daniel Chuba and directed by Mark A.Z. Dippé.[4] The special was created and produced by Optimum Productions, the company owned by Jackson's estate, with animation production by the Seoul-based VFX studio Hammerhead Productions.[5]
A young man and woman, Vincent (Lucas Till) and Victoria (Kiersey Clemons), cross paths on Halloween night. As a result of their meeting, they and Victoria's boss' dog, Ichabod, find themselves in a "magical adventure of personal discovery" at the This Place Hotel, located at 777 Jackson Street.[2] They meet the bellhop chimp Bubbles (Brad Garrett), the scarecrow groundskeeper Hay Man (Jim Parsons), spider security guard Generalissimo Meriweather (Alan Cumming), and mad scientist cat Franklin Stein (Diedrich Bader) who they join in stopping the tyrannical witch Conformity (Lucy Liu) from getting rid of music and dancing.
The story culminates in a dance finale featuring an animated version of Michael Jackson himself (voiced using his music and archival recordings).[2]
Characters
Michael Jackson - The King of Pop himself and a mysterious magical figure who creates 777 Jackson Street Palace Hotel who aids Vincent and Victoria in defeating Conformity, encouraging them to follow their dreams. Possesses the power to transform into various creatures and the ability to undo the effects of Conformity's magic.
Bubbles (voiced by Brad Garrett) - Michael's talking chimp and chauffeur who works as a bellhop at the This Place Hotel. Acts as Vincent and Victoria's guide through the hotel using a magical elevator.
Vincent (voiced by Lucas Till) - A young store clerk who wishes to be a DJ but his father wants him to takeover the family business.
Victoria (voiced by Kiersey Clemons) - A young intern who gave up dancing to be an intern at a big corporation run by her boss Mrs. Grau.
Ichabod - Mrs. Grau's dog who Victoria ends up walking and joins the pair in their adventure. Nicknamed Icky by Victoria.
Conformity (voiced by Lucy Liu) - A tyrannical witch who rules over the inhabitants of the This Place Hotel. She forces them to conform under the threat of turning those who defy her into zombies forbidding dancing and wishes to destroy music.
Hay Man (voiced by Jim Parsons) - The magical scarecrow groundskeeper with a pumpkin for a head who aids Vincent and Victoria.
Generalissimo Meriweather (voiced by Alan Cumming) - The spider head of security who works for Conformity and leads an army of spider guards. Like Vincent, he comes from a long line of spider security guards. Victoria tricks him into dancing after stating she could do better. After one of his soldiers takes a blast of magic from Conformity to protect Generalissimo, he rebels against Conformity.
Franklin Stein (voiced by Diedrich Bader) - A mad scientist cat who works for Conformity and built a machine that destroys music. However, after he is captured by Vincent and Victoria, he reveals that he really wanted to make music before meeting Conformity and joins forces with the pair who use his machine to summon Michael Jackson.
Vincent's Dad (voiced by George Eads) - A grocery store owner and manager who wants Vincent to follow in his footsteps and takeover the family business. However, he apparently has a change of heart as he is later seen at Vincent and Victoria's concert.
Mrs. Grau (voiced by Christine Baranski) - Victoria's boss and owner of Ichabod who she dotes on. She gives Victoria the task of walking Ichabod, promising her a promotion. She and Ichabod later attend Vincent and Victoria's concert.
Music
This Halloween animated special features 28 songs, including some remixes, from Michael Jackson and The Jacksons catalogue, re-imagined and remixed by the producer from former "Immortal World Tour" and "Michael Jackson: One" projects Kevin Antunes.
Song
Year
Album
Notes
Smooth Criminal
1987
Bad
Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough
1979
Off The Wall
New remix combining both the Immortal and One remix
Stranger In Moscow
1995
HIStory: Past, Present And Future - Book I
Is It Scary
1997
Blood On The Dance Floor: HIStory In The Mix
Heartbreaker
2001
Invincible
Instrumental of album version
This Place Hotel
1980
Triumph (The Jacksons)
Instrumental version of Immortal version
Xscape
2014
Xscape
Remixed with "Somebody's Watching Me"
Instrumental version is also used in creating the new remix
Somebody's Watching Me
1984
Somebody's Watching Me (Rockwell)
Remixed with "Xscape"
Michael's lead vocals only
Billie Jean
1982
Thriller
Appears in the end of "Xscape X Somebody's Watching Me"
Remixed with "Torture" on the third appearance of the latter song
Human Nature
1982
Thriller
Instrumental version of Immortal version
Thriller
1982
Thriller
New remix combining the Immortal, One and Stranger Thing remix
Vincent Price's laughing is used several times apart from the dance fight part
Earth Song
1995
HIStory: Past, Present And Future - Book I
SFX and strings only
Dangerous
1991
Dangerous
Remixed with "Jam"
Jam
1991
Dangerous
Remixed with "Dangerous"
Working Day And Night
1979
Off The Wall
Instrumental version of One version
Dirty Diana
1987
Bad
Instrumental version of One version
Bad
1987
Bad
Both album version and cello-only version are used in different scenes
Beat It
1982
Thriller
Similar to the Immortal remix but features different drums and guitars
They Don't Care About Us
1995
HIStory: Past, Present And Future - Book I
Remixed with "Threatened"
Both instrumental version and Immortal version are used in creating the new remix
Threatened
2001
Invincible
Remixed with "They Don't Care About Us"
Both instrumental version and Immortal version are used in creating the new remix
Heal The World
1991
Dangerous
Blood On The Dance Floor
1997
Blood On The Dance Floor: HIStory In The Mix
One version
Slave To The Rhythm
2014
Xscape
Torture
1984
Victory (The Jacksons)
New remix, no lead vocals from Michael or Jermaine is included, only falsettos from Jackie
Remixed with "Billie Jean" on the third appearance
Ghosts
1997
Blood On The Dance Floor: HIStory In The Mix
2000 Watts
2001
Invincible
Instrumental of album version
Childhood
1995
HIStory: Past, Present And Future - Book I
Instrumental of album version
Will You Be There
1991
Dangerous
Production
John Branca had an extensive period working with Michael Jackson that started in 1980, which included work on the singer's iconic Thriller music video.[6] Branca claimed the singer "loved Halloween," as he incorporated horror imagery in Thriller as well as another one of his short films named Ghosts;[6] in 2016, this plus a recurring re-interest of Thriller every halloween influenced the idea of a halloween special featuring Jackson's music, "something that Michael wanted to do" according to Branca,[6] into the minds of Branca and director Mark A.Z. Dippé.[7]
Some of the film's companies and production staff previously collaborated with Jackson in the past; song compiler Kevin Antunes was involved as musical designer in the artist's Cirque duSoleil shows, and CBS had a history of television projects starring him.[6] The dancers and choreographers who worked on the motion capture-animated dance segments were also Jackson veterans.[7] CBS was involved in the casting, recommending actors such as Lucy Liu, Jim Parsons and Alan Cumming.[6]L.L. Cool J was also approached for the project, although doesn't appear in the special.[7]
Marketing
A sneak preview of the special was shown on October 5, 2017 at the New York Comic Con, which was followed by a Q&A panel with the creators.[2]
Reception
On its premiere airing, the special was watched by 5.67 million viewers.[8] The special was broadcast again in 2018 and was watched by 2.03 million viewers.[9]
References
^"New Estate Project". Michael Jackson Official Site. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
^ abcdef"Michael Jackson's Halloween To Air On CBS This Fall". CBS. July 11, 2017.
^Stanhope, Kate (July 11, 2017). "Michael Jackson's Estate and CBS Team for Animated Halloween Special". The Hollywood Reporter.
^Petski, Denise (July 11, 2017). "‘Michael Jackson’s Halloween’ Animated Special Set On CBS". Deadline Hollywood
^Flook, Ray (September 22, 2017). "'Michael Jackson’s Halloween': CBS Scares Up Premiere Date, New Image".
^ abcdeSixsmith, DJ (October 25, 2017). "'Michael Jackson Loved Halloween': John Branca On CBS Animated Special". CBS Boston. Retrieved January 22, 2020.
^ abcDesta, Yohana (October 24, 2017). "The Strange, Spooky Story Behind Michael Jackson's Halloween". Vanity Fair. Retrieved January 22, 2020.
^Rashad (Oct 29, 2017). "Michael Jackson's CBS 'Halloween' Special A Ratings Winner". That Grape Juice. Retrieved Nov 2, 2017.
^Welch, Alex (October 21, 2018). . Archived from the original on October 21, 2018.
External links
Wikiquote has quotations related to Michael Jackson's Halloween.
michael, jackson, halloween, hour, animated, television, special, that, premiered, october, 2017, produced, splash, entertainment, written, bymark, dippéscott, clevengertim, hilldave, johnsondirected, bymark, dippékyung, leestarringlucas, till, kiersey, clemon. Michael Jackson s Halloween is a one hour animated television special that premiered on CBS on October 27 2017 1 2 It was produced by Splash Entertainment Michael Jackson s HalloweenWritten byMark A Z DippeScott ClevengerTim HillDave JohnsonDirected byMark A Z DippeKyung Ho LeeStarringLucas Till Kiersey Clemons Jim Parsons George Eads Alan Cumming Christine Baranski Lucy Liu Brad Garrett Michael JacksonCountry of originUnited StatesSouth KoreaOriginal languageEnglishProductionExecutive producersJohn BrancaJohn McClainLiz YoungMike YoungProducerDaniel ChubaEditorAaron SeelmanRunning time70 minutesProduction companiesThe Estate of Michael JacksonOptimum ProductionsSplash EntertainmentHammerhead ProductionsReleaseOriginal networkCBSOriginal releaseOctober 27 2017 2017 10 27 The cast of voice actors includes Lucas Till Kiersey Clemons Jim Parsons George Eads Alan Cumming Christine Baranski Lucy Liu and Brad Garrett The special also features Michael Jackson s music 3 and a dance finale depicting Jackson himself 2 The special was produced in collaboration with the Michael Jackson estate 2 John Branca and John MacClain co executors of the Estate of Michael Jackson serve as executive producers It is produced by Daniel Chuba and directed by Mark A Z Dippe 4 The special was created and produced by Optimum Productions the company owned by Jackson s estate with animation production by the Seoul based VFX studio Hammerhead Productions 5 Contents 1 Plot 2 Characters 3 Music 4 Production 5 Marketing 6 Reception 7 References 8 External linksPlot EditA young man and woman Vincent Lucas Till and Victoria Kiersey Clemons cross paths on Halloween night As a result of their meeting they and Victoria s boss dog Ichabod find themselves in a magical adventure of personal discovery at the This Place Hotel located at 777 Jackson Street 2 They meet the bellhop chimp Bubbles Brad Garrett the scarecrow groundskeeper Hay Man Jim Parsons spider security guard Generalissimo Meriweather Alan Cumming and mad scientist cat Franklin Stein Diedrich Bader who they join in stopping the tyrannical witch Conformity Lucy Liu from getting rid of music and dancing The story culminates in a dance finale featuring an animated version of Michael Jackson himself voiced using his music and archival recordings 2 Characters EditMichael Jackson The King of Pop himself and a mysterious magical figure who creates 777 Jackson Street Palace Hotel who aids Vincent and Victoria in defeating Conformity encouraging them to follow their dreams Possesses the power to transform into various creatures and the ability to undo the effects of Conformity s magic Bubbles voiced by Brad Garrett Michael s talking chimp and chauffeur who works as a bellhop at the This Place Hotel Acts as Vincent and Victoria s guide through the hotel using a magical elevator Vincent voiced by Lucas Till A young store clerk who wishes to be a DJ but his father wants him to takeover the family business Victoria voiced by Kiersey Clemons A young intern who gave up dancing to be an intern at a big corporation run by her boss Mrs Grau Ichabod Mrs Grau s dog who Victoria ends up walking and joins the pair in their adventure Nicknamed Icky by Victoria Conformity voiced by Lucy Liu A tyrannical witch who rules over the inhabitants of the This Place Hotel She forces them to conform under the threat of turning those who defy her into zombies forbidding dancing and wishes to destroy music Hay Man voiced by Jim Parsons The magical scarecrow groundskeeper with a pumpkin for a head who aids Vincent and Victoria Generalissimo Meriweather voiced by Alan Cumming The spider head of security who works for Conformity and leads an army of spider guards Like Vincent he comes from a long line of spider security guards Victoria tricks him into dancing after stating she could do better After one of his soldiers takes a blast of magic from Conformity to protect Generalissimo he rebels against Conformity Franklin Stein voiced by Diedrich Bader A mad scientist cat who works for Conformity and built a machine that destroys music However after he is captured by Vincent and Victoria he reveals that he really wanted to make music before meeting Conformity and joins forces with the pair who use his machine to summon Michael Jackson Vincent s Dad voiced by George Eads A grocery store owner and manager who wants Vincent to follow in his footsteps and takeover the family business However he apparently has a change of heart as he is later seen at Vincent and Victoria s concert Mrs Grau voiced by Christine Baranski Victoria s boss and owner of Ichabod who she dotes on She gives Victoria the task of walking Ichabod promising her a promotion She and Ichabod later attend Vincent and Victoria s concert Music EditThis Halloween animated special features 28 songs including some remixes from Michael Jackson and The Jacksons catalogue re imagined and remixed by the producer from former Immortal World Tour and Michael Jackson One projects Kevin Antunes Song Year Album NotesSmooth Criminal 1987 BadDon t Stop Til You Get Enough 1979 Off The Wall New remix combining both the Immortal and One remixStranger In Moscow 1995 HIStory Past Present And Future Book IIs It Scary 1997 Blood On The Dance Floor HIStory In The MixHeartbreaker 2001 Invincible Instrumental of album versionThis Place Hotel 1980 Triumph The Jacksons Instrumental version of Immortal versionXscape 2014 Xscape Remixed with Somebody s Watching Me Instrumental version is also used in creating the new remixSomebody s Watching Me 1984 Somebody s Watching Me Rockwell Remixed with Xscape Michael s lead vocals onlyBillie Jean 1982 Thriller Appears in the end of Xscape X Somebody s Watching Me Remixed with Torture on the third appearance of the latter songHuman Nature 1982 Thriller Instrumental version of Immortal versionThriller 1982 Thriller New remix combining the Immortal One and Stranger Thing remix Vincent Price s laughing is used several times apart from the dance fight partEarth Song 1995 HIStory Past Present And Future Book I SFX and strings onlyDangerous 1991 Dangerous Remixed with Jam Jam 1991 Dangerous Remixed with Dangerous Working Day And Night 1979 Off The Wall Instrumental version of One versionDirty Diana 1987 Bad Instrumental version of One versionBad 1987 Bad Both album version and cello only version are used in different scenesBeat It 1982 Thriller Similar to the Immortal remix but features different drums and guitarsThey Don t Care About Us 1995 HIStory Past Present And Future Book I Remixed with Threatened Both instrumental version and Immortal version are used in creating the new remixThreatened 2001 Invincible Remixed with They Don t Care About Us Both instrumental version and Immortal version are used in creating the new remixHeal The World 1991 DangerousBlood On The Dance Floor 1997 Blood On The Dance Floor HIStory In The Mix One versionSlave To The Rhythm 2014 XscapeTorture 1984 Victory The Jacksons New remix no lead vocals from Michael or Jermaine is included only falsettos from Jackie Remixed with Billie Jean on the third appearanceGhosts 1997 Blood On The Dance Floor HIStory In The Mix2000 Watts 2001 Invincible Instrumental of album versionChildhood 1995 HIStory Past Present And Future Book I Instrumental of album versionWill You Be There 1991 DangerousProduction EditJohn Branca had an extensive period working with Michael Jackson that started in 1980 which included work on the singer s iconic Thriller music video 6 Branca claimed the singer loved Halloween as he incorporated horror imagery in Thriller as well as another one of his short films named Ghosts 6 in 2016 this plus a recurring re interest of Thriller every halloween influenced the idea of a halloween special featuring Jackson s music something that Michael wanted to do according to Branca 6 into the minds of Branca and director Mark A Z Dippe 7 Some of the film s companies and production staff previously collaborated with Jackson in the past song compiler Kevin Antunes was involved as musical designer in the artist s Cirque du Soleil shows and CBS had a history of television projects starring him 6 The dancers and choreographers who worked on the motion capture animated dance segments were also Jackson veterans 7 CBS was involved in the casting recommending actors such as Lucy Liu Jim Parsons and Alan Cumming 6 L L Cool J was also approached for the project although doesn t appear in the special 7 Marketing EditA sneak preview of the special was shown on October 5 2017 at the New York Comic Con which was followed by a Q amp A panel with the creators 2 Reception EditOn its premiere airing the special was watched by 5 67 million viewers 8 The special was broadcast again in 2018 and was watched by 2 03 million viewers 9 References Edit New Estate Project Michael Jackson Official Site Retrieved July 11 2017 a b c d e f Michael Jackson s Halloween To Air On CBS This Fall CBS July 11 2017 Stanhope Kate July 11 2017 Michael Jackson s Estate and CBS Team for Animated Halloween Special The Hollywood Reporter Petski Denise July 11 2017 Michael Jackson s Halloween Animated Special Set On CBS Deadline Hollywood Flook Ray September 22 2017 Michael Jackson s Halloween CBS Scares Up Premiere Date New Image a b c d e Sixsmith DJ October 25 2017 Michael Jackson Loved Halloween John Branca On CBS Animated Special CBS Boston Retrieved January 22 2020 a b c Desta Yohana October 24 2017 The Strange Spooky Story Behind Michael Jackson s Halloween Vanity Fair Retrieved January 22 2020 Rashad Oct 29 2017 Michael Jackson s CBS Halloween Special A Ratings Winner That Grape Juice Retrieved Nov 2 2017 Welch Alex October 21 2018 TV Ratings Saturday College football keeps ABC on top Archived from the original on October 21 2018 External links Edit Wikiquote has quotations related to Michael Jackson s Halloween Michael Jackson s Halloween at IMDb Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Michael Jackson 27s Halloween amp oldid 1169322584, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
