Michael Jackson’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Getting New Documentary

A new documentary examining the production and legacy of Michael Jackson’s Super Bowl XXVII halftime show will arrive on Hulu and ESPN next year.

Spectacle: Michael Jackson at the Super Bowl will offer a deep dive into famed 1993 performance at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. It’ll feature an array of never-before-seen footage of Jackson and his team preparing for the performance, and explore how it set a new standard of pop spectacle for the halftime show. 

Landing at Number 16 on Rolling Stone’s rankings of Super Bowl halftime shows, Jackson’s show opened with a voiceover introduction from James Earl Jones, after which the King of Pop was launched onto the stage via trap door. He then stood there, silent, for nearly two minutes, as the crowd cheered.

Jackson went on to perform a setlist with hits like “Billie Jean,” “Black or White,” and “We Are the World.” On the latter song, as well as closer “Heal the World,” Jackson was joined by a choir comprising 3,000 children from the Los Angeles area. 

Spectacle: Michael Jackson at the Super Bowl was directed by Bao Nguyen, who helmed The Greatest Night in Pop, the 2024 doc about the making of “We Are the World.” An exact release date hasn’t been announced, but the film is slated to arrive sometime in February. 

For Jackson, the Super Bowl XXVII Halftime Show was undoubtedly one of the high points in what became an otherwise tumultuous year. In August 1993, the Los Angeles Police Department began investigating allegations of child sexual abuse against Jackson. The family of one of his accusers, Jordan Chandler, sued Jackson that September. In late December, Jackson was strip-searched by police, who also photographed and took videos of his body and genitals.

Jackson went on to settle with the Chandlers in early 1994. He denied all allegations of sexual abuse, and his estate has continued to do so since his death.