Kat Graham, Who Played Diana Ross in ‘Michael,’ Says Scenes Were Cut

Kat Graham, who portrayed Diana Ross in the new Michael Jackson biopic, Michael, says she filmed several scenes that the world will never get to see. “Ahead of the April 24 release of the Michael Jackson film, I want to share that certain legal considerations affected a few scenes, including the ones I filmed with an incredible cast,” she wrote Thursday on social media. “Unfortunately, those moments are no longer part of the final cut, though the team worked hard to preserve as much of the story as possible.”

Variety reports that producers and filmmaker Antoine Fuqua scrubbed several Michael scenes from the end of the picture because they related to a child sexual assault lawsuit Jackson faced in 1993. A clause in Jackson’s settlement with the plaintiff prevented any depiction or mention of the male child in film portrayals of Jackson’s life. The magazine speculates that the Ross scenes may have been cut in accordance with those scenes.

Reps for Lionsgate and Michael did not immediately respond to Rolling Stone’s request for comment.

Set to open Friday, the biopic has already been facing sharp criticism about its failure to address Jackson’s controversies, including the sexual assault allegations. The film, whose chronology now ends in 1988, stars Jackson’s nephew Jaafar Jackson, Jermaine Jackson’s son, as the pop star. Two of Jaafar’s cousins, sons of Tito, have issued words of support for the picture ahead of its release. “Sorry media, u don’t get to control the narrative anymore of who Michael Jackson truly was,” Taj Jackson said.

Rolling Stone’s film critic, David Fear, speculated in a review that nobody should have ever expected to get a real Michael Jackson biopic due to all the legal red tape. “This isn’t really a biopic,” he wrote. “This is the Passion of St. Michael, rendered with great fidelity to and emphasis on both Jackson’s undeniable suffering and equally undeniable talent. … To paraphrase a Jackson song: Please stop. We’ve had enough.”