Colman Domingo and Nia Long Discuss the Michael Jackson Biopic's Scope and Timeline

Colman Domingo and Nia Long sat down with Today on Wednesday, April 22, to discuss a central question surrounding their new Michael Jackson film: its decision to sidestep the child molestation allegations that shadowed much of the pop icon's later years.

During the interview, host Craig Melvin posed the question directly, asking how the actors reconcile their performances with the film's omission of these serious claims, noting that some viewers might perceive the approach as whitewashing a significant part of Jackson's history.

Domingo explained the film's deliberate narrative boundaries. "The film takes place from the '60s to 1988, so it does not go into the first allegations in, what, 2005?" he said, establishing the temporal scope of the project.

He expanded on the creative vision, describing the film as an intimate examination of Jackson's formative years. "So basically, we center it on the makings of Michael. It's an intimate portrait of who Michael is," Domingo stated.

Long chimed in with a brief addition: "Through his eyes."

Domingo continued, elaborating on what the film aims to capture: "That's what this film is. And there's the possibility of there being a Part II that may deal with other things that may happen afterwards. This is about the making of Michael, how he was raised and how he was trying to find his voice as an artist and be a solo artist."

The allegations against Jackson date back decades. In 1993, the Los Angeles Police Department launched an investigation into the musician following claims that he had potentially molested four children, including a 13-year-old boy, according to reporting from that period.