Filming began in South Africa on this new eight-part adaptation of Jules Verne's classic novel in February 2020, and was halted in March by Covid-19 with an episode and a half in the can, before. There are also shots of her and her band performing at a skate park. Landis told The Guardian that they initially planned to make Jackson turn into a four-legged creature. Michael Jackson, at the time being a devout Jehovah's Witness, feared that the video would go against his fans' religious beliefs and feared backlash. [12] The documentary, Making Michael Jackson's Thriller, was directed by Jerry Kramer. It's like he's disconnected from everything and everyone, and that's exciting. Joseph denied this. Welcome to the Digital Spy forums. [3], The series was created by Brian Clemens, who also scripted the majority of the episodes and story-lined every installment. This article includes content provided by Spotify. "Everyone experiences these physical transformations in their bodies and new, unfamiliar sexual thoughts in their minds. Miss Scarlet and The Duke, Season 1-2 | Watch Now. And yet despite all these fancy awards, "Thriller" didn't win the one prize that seemed like a lock. However, Ray sued Jackson on May 6, 2009, less than two months before his death on June 25. "We don't believe they were complete, and they were never timely," Ray's attorney, Jason Feldman, told the New York Daily News, which reported that the most substantial chunk of money the actress received came in 1998 15 years after "Thriller" was shot. They made something that was so perfect for the early 80s. It's a moot point whether or not a bit of fear does them any harm in the long term. The video finishes with the bed being set on fire, burning the man who bid on her. Fall Out Boy's video for "Sugar, We're Goin Down" alternates between the band jamming and a love story between a boy with antlers and a normal girl. | He reaches out to her but can't pull her back up and she falls. The zoomed in shots of her face and tears are reminiscent of Sinead O'Conner's "Nothing Compares 2 U" video, which is on this list. It was (as others have said) billed as a "The Tube" special. | It's hard to forget. Some of the biggest Broadway productions of recent years are musicals based on preexisting, well-known media. I just wanted to create something that would do justice to the song and I was excited about making, and I think Thriller was the same way.". Cast: Christian Bale, Harry Melling, Gillian Anderson, Lucy Boynton, Toby Jones. [6] Jackson's make-up casts "a ghostly pallor" over his skin and emphasizes the outline of his skull, an allusion to the mask from The Phantom of the Opera (1925). Branca wouldn't do it, and he instead locked up the footage and gave Jackson the idea to let "Thriller" out, but just with a denouncing disclaimer tacked on to the start. The video even won a Grammy. This is to say nothing of the countless videos, viral and otherwise, of people re-creating the familiar "Thriller" dance moves particularly the stylized zombie movements at weddings, block parties, and Halloween celebrations. It's hard to forget, and it won a Grammy for best music video. "Thriller" was a watershed moment in music video. All eight episodes of Prime Video's new show The Consultant made their debut last week, allowing folks to fly through the entirety of the workplace saga like the levels of an . With James Purefoy, Charlie Creed-Miles, Sasha Behar, Dervla Kirwan. However, after the new channel Showtime agreed to pay half the budget, MTV agreed to pay the rest, justifying the expenditure as financing for a motion picture and not a music video. Encompassing just about . Unpredictable crime thriller. The film had a brief theatrical release in Los Angeles at the AVCO Theater - it played for three weeks along with Disney's. [8], Initially, the television networks refused to finance the project, sharing the view that Thriller was "last year's news". Actually, "Thriller" is more of a short film, a nearly 14-minute horror movie about a young man who's "not like other guys" who transforms into a werewolf-like monster, terrorizes his date, and dances like a zombie while looking cool in a red leather jacket. Ray Tintori, who did MGMT's Kids is really good, too. [9][14] Brian Clemens' own favourite episode, "A Coffin for the Bride" (US: Kiss Kiss, Kill Kill), featured a performance from a young Helen Mirren.[15]. [38][39] The description of the Dancing Zombie in the game paraphrased the disclaimer at the end of Thriller. It ends with her holding a photo of them. The 13-minute film that resulted changed the music video for ever, becoming less a promo clip than a cultural phenomenon. A night at the movies turns into a nightmare when Michael and his date are attacked by a hoard of bloodthirsty zombies - only a "Thriller" can save them now. She ran around with her friends bothering patrons and employees, trying on a bunch of clothes, and making a giant mess. Ending with Alice as a cake that the Mad Hatter and friends consume and a small burp from Petty is just the cherry on top. The bride leaves the altar, and when the groom follows, he sees her making out with one of the guests outside. She ends up shoving him out of a car and leaving him in the dust and goes into a rebellious phase. [10], To help finance the production, Landis's producer George Folsey Jr. suggested a making-of documentary that, combined with the "Thriller" video, would produce an hour-long film that could be sold to television. He warns her that he is "not like other guys", transforms into a werecat and attacks her. Additionally, Landis equates the process of man turning to beast, in "Thriller" and in other werewolf-based movies (such as the director's own An American Werewolf in London), with puberty. The signs on the theater are as follows: The main sign reads "Vincent Price's Thriller". Walking down a city street at night, Jackson teases her by performing the verses of "Thriller". At one point, the boy tries to cut his antlers off to be accepted, but she stops him. Directed by F. Gary Gray, who also directed "Straight Out of Compton" and "The Fate of the Furious," the "Waterfalls" video is emotional. Seemingly unaware of the time difference, Jackson had called at 2am UK time and the sleepy director had to feign knowledge of the song, which he hadn't heard. She gets a tattoo and a belly button piercing. Original cast member Al Molinaro made a cameo. 2023 Hearst UK is the trading name of the National Magazine Company Ltd, 30 Panton Street, Leicester Square, London, SW1Y 4AJ. The band's front man lifts a bus up off a girl at some point and saves a dog from a fire. ", Jonze took the freedom he sensed in Thriller and also its eccentricity and humour and ran with it, creating some of the 90s' most famous music videos, including the Beastie Boys' Sabotage and Praise You by Fatboy Slim, which also get continually spoofed. [1] It is an anthology series: each episode has a self-contained story and its own cast. Avril Lavigne's disastrous romp through a mall was every teen's dream in the early 2000s. Michael Jackson seems like this kid who loves music, horror films, special effects, makeup, zombies and wants all of those things in the video. In the 1950s, Michael Jackson and a young woman (Ola Ray) run out of gas while driving in a wooded area. 08/07/2009 18:21. [8] The production team agreed to protect the negatives and locked them in Branca's office. She and other dancers groove and show off their moves throughout the video. The storyline follows newly-qualified vet James as he leaves his home in Glasgow during 1937 to start working for head vet Siegfried in the fictional Yorkshire village of Darrowby. Watch the red dress video here the white dress video here. "It's simple all you've got to do is dance, sing, and make it scary," DiLeo says he told Jackson at the time. The zombie's costumes were purchased from The Salvation Army. He's taking things to a whole new place. 6 Vogue Madonnna. The video for "Seven Nation Army" is a kaleidoscopic, trippy series of shots. Thriller was an event even when it was being shot in October 1983. We didn't get a Channel 4 signal until late 84 so missed out entirely! Alternate Versions Here, in no particular order, are the eight best thrillers on Prime Video. The actress claimed that back in the 1980s, she was promised a portion of the "Thriller" profits (2.5 percent, according to Courthouse News), and yet, more than two decades later, she hadn't received any money since some initial payments. The video includes clips from "Purple Rain," too. There's shots of them on a boat in a "storm," there's memorable camouflage outfits, and a truly special dance break in front of a temple. The speed of the video shifts with the music resulting in a satisfying video. I was suing him for 14 years. The cat's dance moves even mirror her's. MTV paid $250,000 and Showtime $300,000 for the rights to the documentary, Jackson would take care of upfront costs, and the video was able to go ahead, with the label coughing up $100,000. What's likely the most popular second-generation "Thriller" video came from an unlikely place: a prison in the Philippines. [42], number of copies sold were 900,000 at a price of $30, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania, YouTube video of more than 1,500 prisoners performing the dance, Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, "Director: Funds for "Thriller" almost didn't appear", "Michael Jackson's "Thriller" is the eternal Halloween bop and so much more", "John Landis says Michael Jackson was too 'grotesque' to film: Howell", "How Michael Jackson's Thriller changed music videos for ever", "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' is the eternal Halloween bop and so much more", "Michael Jackson's Life & Legacy: Global Superstar (198286)", "It Happened This Week in L.A. History: Silver Screen Thrills Los Angeles Magazine", "Michael Jackson's videos set a new standard", "VH1 Names '100 Greatest Videos of All Time', "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Added To National Film Registry", "MTV: 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made", "The 30 All-TIME Best Music Videos Michael Jackson, 'Thriller', "Jackson "Thriller" film picked for U.S. registry", "Michael Jackson's Thriller added to US film archive", "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' remains a Halloween hit", "Barack and Michelle Obama make Halloween a thriller for DC kids", "John Landis on 'Thriller 3D', the 'American Werewolf' Remake, & Lucasfilm's Director Troubles", "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Could be Broadway Show", "Review: Masterful Plants vs. Zombies Proves Less Is More", "Plants vs. Zombies (Windows, Mac OS X) - the Cutting Room Floor", "Michael Jackson Estate Forces 'Plants vs. Zombies' Update", "Monster Metaphors: Notes on Michael Jackson's Thriller", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Michael_Jackson%27s_Thriller_(music_video)&oldid=1142427273, This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 09:09. Sessions had been previously sparsely attended, so Garcia introduced elaborately choreographed dance routines, and before long, as many as 1,500 inmates reported to the prison yard to learn some moves. ", The sound of the growling animal during the transformation is the same sound from. Michael Jackson is amazing. The stories were often set in the London commuter belt. In 2009, it became the first music video inducted into the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant". "[8] Jackson's manager Frank DiLeo suggested making a music video for it, and recalled telling Jackson: "It's simpleall you've got to do is dance, sing, and make it scary. This idea was replaced with a two-legged monster, as this made it easier for him to dance. Between Britney Spears' flight attendant uniform, diamond and nude body suit, and black cat suit, all of her outfits are memorable. | [17], On November 14, 1983, Thriller was shown to a private audience at the Crest Theater in Los Angeles. It may seem odd to have a cat playing her love interest as she sings about loving a guy despite their differences, yet that's the theme of the video. Michael Jackson - Thriller (Official 4K Video) Michael Jackson 27.3M subscribers Subscribe 6.6M Share 887M views 13 years ago #Halloween #MichaelJackson #4kRemastered Michael Jackson's official. Either in the VHS or Betamax format, the TV accessory allowed them to watch movies or other content at home via a cassette borrowed for the cost of a few bucks from a local video rental outlet. Panic! TV-MA | 240 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller 7.4 Rate A young couple move into an apartment only to find the body of a young woman that had been missing for 2 years but never registered as missing which leads to a deeper investigation into what actually happened. The black-and-white video features various scenes of the siblings together and alone, reacting emotionally and with anger at certain moments. Thirty years ago this week on 21 November it was first shown to the public. [8] Within months, the documentary sold a million copies, making it the bestselling video release at that point. That's a pretty serious statement, and one that makes the silly horror movie-inspired fun to follow seem like it's going to be a lot darker and menacing than it is. Feel free to tell me if you think I'm being over protective but I'm really not happy that my son's Yr3 class has been shown the full version of Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' video this afternoon in school. Less than two years later, sister network VH1 would also name "Thriller" the top video ever made. [9][8] These title sequences were used in Britain when the series was repeated on regional ITV stations in the 1980s, and are also included as extras on the Complete Series box set. By the time Thriller's sales cycle wound down in 1984, it was the best-selling LP of all time in the United States, with sales of 33 million. The "Love Shack" video was filmed at the home of ceramic artists Philip Maberry and Scott Walker and shows people grooving and having a fun party in this place in the middle of some woods. The Pale Blue Eye (2022) Image via Netflix. Millions of people who somehow hadn't yet purchased Thriller were inspired to do so, and during the peak of the video's popularity, the album sold more than a million copies a week, according to Vanity Fair. "Scream," written in response to media backlash Michael Jackson was facing, places the two siblings on a spacecraft. During all the chaos, lead singer Brendon Urie is the ringmaster. Blink-182 does parodies of the Backstreet Boys, Christina Aguilera, NSYNC, and more as the camera flashes to different scenes. Ola Ray took home a lot of memories and stories from her time co-starring in Michael Jackson's landmark "Thriller" music video. [12] Nina Blackwood, a former MTV executive, said music videos improved after Thriller, with more storylines and more intricate choreography. According to Landis, Michael asked Joseph to be removed; he refused and had to be escorted off the set by police. Jackson becomes a zombie himself and dances with the horde to the song. The mystery and thriller . Landis talked Jackson out of getting a new actress by reminding him that Ray was a Playmate in Playboy, not in "Thriller." The singer and the filmmaker met, and Landis dismissed the notion of presenting "Thriller" as a typical, cheaply made music video. Disney star Alyson Stoner broke out in the video as the lead child dancer. The audience gave the film a standing ovation. [37], The video game Plants vs. Zombies by PopCap Games contained a reference to the Thriller music video in its original releases from May 2009 (a month before Jackson's death) until it was removed in July 2010. When I started directing videos myself a few years later, it was like a touchpoint. "Above all, it's just this amazing documentation of Michael Jackson at his most electric," he says. It references numerous horror films and sees Jackson dancing with a horde of zombies. Here are 55 of the most iconic music videos of all time. Mumsnet carries some affiliate marketing links, so if you buy something through our posts, we may get a small share of the sale (more details here). Real clips from the show are also used throughout the video to make it seem like the band is actually on the show. The simple black-and-white video features Beyonc in a leotard flanked on either side by a dancer in a similar outfit. And it ended up being the most iconic," she said. It's trippy to watch and makes the video one of the most recognizable of all time. "Due to my strong personal convictions," the disclaimer credited to Michael Jackson reads, "I wish to stress that this film in no way endorses a belief in the occult." Much of Cher's body is exposed and both she and the Navy received criticism for it. [14] According to Landis, the production involved the largest makeup team in film history up to that point, with 40 makeup artists. 8 Say You . "Music videos in the early 80s started as a little cottage industry in Britain, really," says Brian Grant, the British director who made the Private Dancer video for Tina Turner and Whitney Houston's I Wanna Dance With Somebody. It was the first music video to be selected. Directed by Colin Trevorrow. Then she wakes and crawls outside to walk along the ledge. Perhaps that's Thriller's ultimate legacy, and it's also why Jonze has become a key influence on film-makers creating videos for YouTube. According to Vanity Fair, Landis directed Jackson to add an element of sexual forwardness to his role, with an eye toward interesting the singer's many female fans by making him appear more manly and virile. Other videos that featured highly in yesterday's poll included Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody at No. "When you're making music videos, it's like you're a tailor; you cut the suit to fit your model and the artist you're working with. The comic book character later attempts to join her in the real world and eventually does. Every shot in the "Bye Bye Bye" video is memorable. The music video director Brian Grant credited Thriller as the turning point when music videos became a "proper industry". Michael Jackson had a huge 1983. J-Lo brought in the new millennium with her video for "Waiting for Tonight." Stars: Alexander Arnold, David Bamber, Claudie Blakley, Denise Gough Votes: 3,682 3. One major part of the early concept was rejected. [8], Jackson created the zombie dance with the choreographer Michael Peters, who had choreographed the "Beat It" video. The "Like a Prayer" video largely takes place in a church, but there is a subplot where Madonna witnesses a murder and sees a black man arrested for the crime he did not commit. The Thriller video makes many allusions to horror films. In one scene, Michael's right "cat's eye" contact lens is askew and not in straight. The video one video of the year at the VMAs. She said: "You look at those early videos and they were shockingly bad. [11], Landis's wife Deborah Nadoolman, who had recently worked on the film Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), designed the costumes, including Jackson's red jacket. An argument could be made for "Baby One More Time" to be on the list for the school girl uniform and high school setting, but "Toxic" deserves the title. Why did you need to stay up late if you were 'tape'ing it? Tom Petty channeled "Alice in Wonderland" for the "Don't Come Around Here No More" music video. [8] According to Landis, Ola Ray, a former Playboy Playmate, was cast as she was "crazy for Michael" and had a "great smile". [10] It includes home video footage of a young Jackson dancing and footage of his performances from The Ed Sullivan Show and Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever. Also, the group performs in water and in liquefied forms in front of a waterfall. Most of the video is a close-up shot of Sinad's face as she sings the song. Thriller was an event even when it was being shot in October 1983. Jackson urged the Epic executives Walter Yetnikoff and Larry Stessel to help conceive a plan to return the album to the top of the charts. As of 2020, more than 59 million people had watched the sea of orange-clad people amble and groove like zombie-monsters. [8] After originally being screened late at night in the U.S. under the ABC Wide World of Entertainment billing from 1973, some episodes were retitled for U.S. syndication in 1978, and all had additional opening sequences shot with new titles and credits but without the original cast and, for this reason, often only featuring menacing figures seen from the neck down. [27] The Library described it as "the most famous music video of all time". In 2017, Ray had to file a lawsuit again, when she alleged that she wasn't paid her share for a 3-D re-release of the "Thriller" video. Isn't it ironic? See production, box office & company info, The House with a Clock in Its Walls (2018), At the Movies: Christine/Silkwood/Sudden Impact/Thriller, Palace Theater, 630 S Broadway, Los Angeles, California, USA. It won a Grammy for best music video. [8] Thriller is popular on YouTube, which hosts user-submitted videos of reenactments of the dance. The second stars Bush in a red dress doing the same memorable dance moves and emotive faces, but instead of a room, she is in the middle of the woods. [10], In 1984, the National Coalition on Television Violence (NCTV) reviewed 200 MTV videos and classified more than half as too violent, including Thriller. [20] In 2009, Jackson sold the Thriller rights to the Nederlander Organization to stage a Broadway musical based on the video. "Everybody Hurts" is a heavy song, and the corresponding video highlights the emotional lyrics. I don't think we had video recorder then. [2] It was produced by John Sichel (the first three series), John Cooper (series 4) and Ian Fordyce (the final two series) for Associated Television (ATV) at its Elstree studios north of London. Throw Katy Perry and her dancers in clothing covered in sweets, dress Snoop Dogg in a cupcake suit, make the setting a board game called Candyfornia, and you've got yourself the basis of the "California Gurls" video. Jackson and the zombies chase his girlfriend into an abandoned house. In December 2009, the Library of Congress selected the video for the National Film Registry. When he raps about Photoshop, a woman is shown all made up and without makeup. At Murphy's insistence, the film was played again. And as later legal filings would indicate, that's about all the actress and model took home. "I had some intimate moments with him in his trailer," Ray said. And then 4 months later it was spoofed on the very first episode of ITV's Spitting Image. In 2018, the short film was digitally remastered exclusively for IMAX 3D theaters, playing before. Here are 55 of the most iconic music . As the song progresses, multiple Morissettes sing in the car and act as her passengers until the car runs out of gas and she has to walk. There's the car running out of gas and it's like a movie, then it just keeps going, as if they're saying: 'That'd be cool, let's do that.' "Thriller" remains a classic, as well as an unprecedented moment in music and film, and it wasn't easy to pull off. "The thrill is gone," suggested the Melody Maker in its review of the album, and it wasn't until videos for Billie Jean and Beat It hit heavy rotation on MTV in early 1983, and Jackson performed the Moonwalk for the first time on the Motown 25 TV special in May, that it really took off. The students progressively begin to head bang to the music as a riot erupts and the kids destroy the instruments. Genre Adventure, Action, Science Fiction. Later, she's on the same ball nude, except for the boots. The promotional video for "Bohemian Rhapsody" starts off with the striking, yet simple shot of the four band members sitting in darkness and singing the a capella part of the song. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. [23] He said it was the "mini-movie that revolutionized music videos" and "cemented Jackson's status as one of the most ambitious, innovative pop stars of all time". My DS1 does sound more like the OPs, and unlike some children, he is more likely to admit to feeling upset or We can only really go by the experience of our own DCs, though. The Rig is a horror thriller series arriving on Amazon Prime Video in early 2023. / The foulest stench is in the air / The funk of 40,000 years / And grizzy ghouls from every tomb / Are closing in to seal your doom / And though you fight to stay alive / Your body starts to shiver / For no mere mortal can resist / The evil of the thriller. The video won a Grammy for best long-form video. Every Beyonc video deserves a spot on this list, but "Single Ladies" has a special legacy. [8], In early August, after seeing his horror film An American Werewolf in London (1981), Jackson contacted the director John Landis. [12], The video doubled boosted sales of the Thriller album,[8] which sold a million copies a week following the video debut[12] and became the bestselling album of all time. [22] Gil Kaufman of MTV described the video as "iconic" and felt that it was one of Jackson's most enduring legacies. Then it shifts to the musicians performing on stage. [41] The lawsuit was settled in 2012 for an undisclosed amount. Brandy and Monica's apartments are right next to each other and the girls are seeing the same man. The "Life on Mars" music video was filmed for the song's release as a single. Marlon Brando, Fred Astaire, Rock Hudson and Jackie Kennedy Onassis all turned up on set, and Eddie Murphy, Prince and Diana Ross were spotted at the private premiere on 14 November. Eventually, she stands on the edge of an overpass preparing to jump when her ex shows up with a bunch of cops. After production on the video wrapped, Jackson was told by leaders of his church (Jackson was a practicing member of the Jehovah's Witness faith) that they thought "Thriller" encouraged demon worship, and if it were released, he'd be excommunicated. features a band called the Love Below performing on a London show as a bunch of women scream in excitement. The critic Kobena Mercer found similarities to the werewolf in The Company of Wolves (1984). Told from Eva's perspective, the film follows her earlier days as a mother and her ongoing . The "Work It" video is filled with some interesting CGI work, memorable dance moves, and some wild cameos that include Timbaland and Eve. [23], Michael Jackson's Thriller was named the "greatest video" by MTV in 1999,[24] and by VH1[22] and Time in 2001. There's running on a moving train, there's dancing in a blue room, there's a dog chase, and a car chase. [14] He initially imagined the werecat would resemble a black panther, but added a longer mane and larger ears. John Landis was in London in 1983 when Michael Jackson called to ask if he was interested in making a video for Thriller, the title track of the album he'd released a little under a year before. Thriller extended the usual pop video format with a long build-up to the start of the music in which Jackson was slowly transformed into a werewolf, and later a zombie.The horror film star Vincent Price was hired to provide a suitably eerie commentary. The trailer for the new TV show, which launched at 3pm on March 1, introduces Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas' characters, Nadia Sinh and Mason Kane, across multiple high-octane action sequences. Instead, he thought, it would be shot like a real movie, on classy 35-millimeter film stock. [13], Other memorable episodes include: "Someone at the Top of the Stairs", one of a handful of forays into the supernatural, in which two female students move into a boarding house and begin to notice that none of the other residents ever go out or receive any mail; and "I'm The Girl He Wants to Kill", in which a witness to a murder finds herself trapped in a deserted office block overnight with the killer, and is forced to play a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with him to survive (there is barely any dialogue throughout its second half). The "Ironic" video stars Morissette getting into her car at a gas station and then driving into a wintery landscape. "I recall everybody at college talking about it; about how it was like a mini-movie and how much it had cost. [8], The video debuted on MTV alongside Making Michael Jackson's Thriller on December 2, 1983. I'm sure VCRs had timers even then. A videocassette of "Thriller" opened the door to priced-to-own videos. In 2011, one of the two jackets worn by Jackson in the video sold at auction for $1.8 million. On principle, though, it should be up to the parents to decide , in a situation where a film is being shown that is above the age range for that class. [30] "Thriller" has become closely associated with Halloween;[31][14] in 2016, US president Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama danced to the song with schoolchildren at a White House Halloween event. This particular Thriller musical is not to be confused with Thriller Live, a Michael Jackson-themed theatrical experience that ran in London's West End (the British Broadway) for well over a decade. He and Peters imagined how the zombies would move by making faces in the mirror, incorporating "jazzy" moves, "not too much ballet or whatever". [6] According to Peter Dendle, the zombie invasion sequence was inspired by Night of the Living Dead (1968).