This week, reports have spread around the internet confirming that Michael Jackson did not, in fact, write the song "Do the Bartman" from The Simpsons. But here's a new curious factoid about the late King of Pop and his forays into film and television: he wanted to play Jar Jar Binks from the Star Wars prequel trilogy.This news was revealed by Ahmed Best, the actor who ended up scoring the role of Jar Jar. A year ago, he mentioned on Reddit that he had originally beaten out Jackson for the role.
According to Best, he learned this piece of information when he went to a Jackson concert at London, UK's Wembley Arena. He attended the gig with co-star Natalie Portman and director George Lucas and his kids, and they all went backstage to meet the singer. "George introduced me as "Jar Jar" and I was like, That's kind of weird. Michael was like, "Oh. OK." I thought, What is going on? After Michael had driven off, we all go back up to a big afterparty. I'm having a drink with George and I said, "Why did you introduce me as Jar Jar?" He said, "Well, Michael wanted to do the part but he wanted to do it in prosthetics and makeup like 'Thriller.'" George wanted to do it in CGI. My guess is ultimately Michael Jackson would have been bigger than the movie, and I don't think he wanted that."
Although Jackson's would-be performance is sadly left to the imagination, Lucas may have saved the performer from embarrassment. In 2006 Binks topped a list of "Most Irksome" characters in movie history, and is generally despised by fans. Still, Best has accepted the criticism of his character, and has come to terms with the public's reception. "At the end of the day, it is the movie business, and if the character doesn't work for the people who watch the movie then the character doesn't work," he said in the same interview. "I can't take that personally." Since portraying the floppy-eared Gungan, Best studied at the American Film Institute producers program and has gone on to dabble in writing, directing and producing in addition to acting.
