Michael Jackson Biopic and ‘Thomas Crown Affair’ Remake Highlight Projects to Nab California Tax Credits
Michael Jackson biopic from Lionsgate and filmmaker Antoine Fuqua, will star the late pop icon’s own nephew, Jaafar Jackson, in its title role.“Michael” “is on track to generate more in-state spending than any other film in the tax credit program’s 14-year history. In a Monday release, the commission stated that “The Thomas Crown Affair,” “Michael” and an untitled live-action project from Disney are three big-budget projects that will generate an estimated $265 million in qualified spending and $433 million in total spending in California. (Here, “qualified” spending is defined as wages paid to below-the-line workers and payments to in-state vendors; all other spending is not incentivized under the program.)“Our tax credit program continues to welcome a diverse range of projects, from big-budget films to small independent projects, and everything in between,” California Film Commission Executive Director Colleen Bell said in a statement.