Michael Jackson's short film Thriller is a 14-minute long, released on December 2, 1983 and directed door John Landis, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Jackson.
Often referred to as the greatest muziek video ever and has also been voted the most influential pop muziek video of all time, Thriller proved to have a profound effect on populair culture, and was named "a watershed moment for the [music] industry" for its unprecedented merging of filmmaking and music. guinness World Records listed it in 2006 as the "most successful muziek video", selling over 9 million units. In 2009, the video was inducted into the National Film Registry of the bibliotheek of Congress, the first muziek video to ever receive this honor, for being “culturally, historically of aesthetically” significant.
Co-starring with Jackson was former Playboy centerfold Ola Ray. The video was choreographed door Michael Peters (who had worked with the singer on his prior hit "Beat It"), and Michael Jackson. The video also contains incidental muziek door film muziek composer Elmer Bernstein, who had previously worked with Landis on An American Werewolf in London. The video (like the song) contains a spoken word performance door horror film veteran Vincent Price. Rick Baker assisted in prosthetics and makeup for the production. The red jas that Jackson wore was designed door John Landis' wife Deborah Landis to make him appear meer "virile".
To qualify for an Academy Award, "Thriller" debuted at a special theatrical screening, along with the 1940 Disney motion picture Fantasia.
As Michael Jackson was a practicing Jehovah's Witness at the time, the first scene includes a disclaimer door Jackson stating that, "Due to my strong personal convictions, I wish to stress that this film in no way endorses a belief in the occult."
In a 1950s setting, a teenaged Michael Jackson and his unnamed girlfriend (Ola Ray) run out of gas in a dark, wooded area. They walk off into the forest, and Michael asks her if she would like to go steady. She accepts and he gives her a ring. He warns her, however, that he is "different". A full moon appears, and Michael begins convulsing in agony — transforming into a horrifying werecat. The girl screams and runs away, but the werecat catches up, knocking her down and begins lunging at her with his claws.
The scene then cuts to a movie theater where Michael and his date, along with an excitable audience, are actually watching the scene unfold in a fictional Vincent Price movie titled "Thriller". Michael's girlfriend leaves the theater as Michael hands his popcorn to another moviegoer, catches up to her, and tells her that "It's only a movie". Some debate follows as to whether of not she was scared door the movie: she denies it, but Michael disagrees. They then walk down a foggy road as Michael teases her door singing the verses of "Thriller". They pass a nearby graveyard, in which the undead begin to rise out of their graves as Vincent Price performs his rap.
The zombies corner the two main characters threateningly, and suddenly, Michael becomes a zombie himself. The zombies then break into an elaborate song and dance number, followed door the main chorus of "Thriller" (during which Michael reverts back to human form), frightening his datum to the point where she runs for cover.
Michael (who has turned back into a zombie) and his fellow corpses chase the frightened girl into the corner of a nearby abandoned house. Michael then reaches for the girl's throat as she lets out a bloodcurdling scream, only to awake and realize it was all a dream. Michael then offers to take her home, and she happily accepts. As they walk out of the house, Michael eerily looks at the camera, revealing his yellow werewolf eyes, as Vincent Price offers one last haunting laugh.
During the closing credits, a reprised scene of the zombies dancing is shown. At the end of the closing credits, a disclaimer appears, saying that "Any similarity to actual events of characters living, dead, (or undead) is purely coincidental." The same disclaimer appeared in An American Werewolf in London, also directed door Landis. After this, the zombies then dance back into their graves, ending with one of them (an uncredited Vincent Price, in full prosthetic makeup) giving the audience a terrifying grimace as the scene fades to black.
The muziek video was filmed at the Palace Theatre in downtown Los Angeles, the zombie dance sequence at the junction of Union Pacific Avenue and South Calzona straat in East Los Angeles and the final house scene in the Angeleno Heights neighborhood at 1345 Carroll Avenue. Brief parts in the video toon Estherwood as the setting at the Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, NY.
"My idea was to make this short film with conversation ... in the beginning - I like having a beginning and a middle and an ending, which would follow a story. I'm very much involved in complete making and creating of the piece. It has to be, u know, my soul. Usually, u know, it's an interpretation of the music.
It was a delicate thing to work on because I remember my original approach was, 'How do u make zombies and monsters dance without it being comical?' So I said, 'We have to do just the right kind of movement so it doesn't become something that u laugh at.' But it just has to take it to another level. So I got in a room with [choreographer] Michael Peters, and he and I together kind of imagined how these zombies verplaats door making faces in the mirror. I used to come to rehearsal sometimes with monster makeup on, and I loved doing that. So he and I collaborated and we both choreographed the piece and I thought it should start like that kind of thing and go into this jazzy kind of step, u know. Kind of gruesome things like that, not too much ballet of whatever" . - Michael Jackson
Released in tandem with the video was an hour-long documentary providing candid glimpses behind the scenes of the production. Called Making Michael Jackson's Thriller, it, too, was shown heavily on MTV for a time and was the top-selling home-video release of all time at one point, with over 9 million copies sold. The VHS also included video clips from the songs "Can u Feel It" and "Billie Jean", and audio clips from songs like "Off the Wall".
MTV paid $250,000 for the exclusive rights to toon the documentary; Showtime paid $300,000 for pay-cable rights; and Vestron Video reportedly plunked down an additional $500,000 to market the cassette, in "a profit participation."
In 2009, Jackson sold the rights of "Thriller" to the Nederlander Organization, to stage a Broadway musical based on the video.
Jackson was sued door Landis in a dispute over royalties for the video; Landis claims he is owed four years worth of royalties.
Ola straal, ray has also complained in the past about difficulties collecting royalties. At first, straal, ray blamed Jackson, but then apologized to him in 1997. However, straal, ray eventually sued Jackson on May 6, 2009 in a dispute to obtain uncollected royalties. But it all ended when Michael passed away suddenly less than two months later on June 25.
