Judge Rodney Melville’s decision to prohibit cameras from Michael Jackson’s courtroom trial has done little to dispel interest in the case. In fact, it seems to have heightened public curiosity now that the trial is being heard behind closed doors. Unlike the 1995 OJ Simpson murder case, where 90 per cent of the American appetite was whetted with a live verdict delivery, Jackson’s trial relies on daily re-enactments to nourish a fixated public.
Nielsen Media Research says that at its highest, the show has attracted over 517,000 viewers per episode. That’s in addition to E! International Network’s viewers across 50 countries, and viewers in the Britain and Ireland where it’s carried by co-producer British Sky Broadcasting. The daily re-enactments of the child molestation trial go out on both Sky News and Sky One from Tuesdays to Saturdays.
Edward Moss was the ideal candidate to play Jackson in the daily re-enactments. Previously starring as Jackson in Scary Movie 3, Moss has also appeared in Nip/Tuck and on Mad TV, a fitting trio of roles to prepare him for his current part.
His biggest challenge is keeping up with Jackson’s ever-changing dress sense. When Jackson chose to wear pyjamas to court, it sent his 6ft 3in impersonator on a frenzied spree of Los Angeles’ boys’ nightwear departments to find an exact replica. One wonders if the Jackson temperament is inadvertently finding its way into the re-enactor.
After much eye-lining, white-washing and the drawing of nostrils, Moss studies the morning’s courtroom transcripts. He says that he tries not to memorise his lines as, like Jackson, he prefers to be perceived as natural when fighting for his life. The re-enactments are filmed in the late afternoon, and then edited for the next day’s broadcast.
The fundamental problem with the show is its lack of weirdness, the principal cog in the wheel of public fascination with the pop star for the last two decades. Jackson is intriguing because of the way he moonwalks across our cultural anxieties about race, gender, and sexuality. But The Michael Jackson Trial plays it straight and safe. It is, of course, constrained by what transpires in court, but it would help if we saw more of Jackson. Moss equates his role with that of a silent actor as he intently stares down at each witness who takes the stand. Sometimes he looks on the verge of crying out in exasperation; other times, he grimaces like he’s about to break into ‘Don’t Stop ‘til You Get Enough’.
Regardless of whether or not Jackson — and in turn Moss — project utterances, this court trial re-enactment has captivated audiences worldwide. Is it because it fulfils a voyeuristic yearning that is rarely satisfied so easily? Is it the only medium through which the public can judge if Jackson is guilty or not? Maybe it’s merely entertainment for an otherwise bored audience. “It’s really all an illusion,” said Moss in an American TV interview recently, “an illusion with costumes, make-up and wigs.” But Michael Jackson is real, as are his accusers, in what has become one of TV’s scariest moments.
“Well, he seems to be guilty but my biggest problem with it is Sky News and the fact that the reconstruction is on day in day out. It seems to be on so much that it couldn’t help but affect the outcome of the case.”
Gavin, Sligo
“Absolutely, without a doubt I think he’s guilty. So much evidence has popped up lately. Because he’s in the public eye it is a little bit harder for him to mask it!”
Barbara, Dublin
“I’m not too sure. It seems anyone accusing Jackson has ulterior motives, whether he is guilty or not. I’m not going to say that he’s innocent, he has issues and he could be guilty as hell, but in this case the people who are after him aren’t after him for those reasons.”
Harry, Dublin