Michael Jackson Wanted to Play Professor Xavier in 'X-Men'

Michael Jackson had X-Men ambitions.

The late pop icon’s film aspirations were explored in a new THR cover story about Bryan Singer‘s 2000 movie, X-Men.

According to the report, Michael was interested in playing Professor Xavier in the film – and had no issue with wearing makeup to play the role of an older white character.

“In the spring of 1999, Bryan Singer and a group of X-Men producers and crew were working out of the old Fox offices near Olympic and Bundy when Michael Jackson walked in the door. Wearing sunglasses and refusing to shake hands, Jackson was visiting the industrial space to meet with Singer to discuss the prospect of playing Professor Xavier in the upcoming film. ‘I said to him, ‘Do you know Xavier is an older white guy?” X-Men producer Lauren Shuler Donner recalls. ‘And Michael said, ‘Oh yeah. You know, I can wear makeup.”

From there, Michael opened up an “elaborate presentation complete with the short film Ghosts, in which the pop star morphed into a 60-something white mayor railing against a well-meaning performer who entertains local children with magic tricks.”

Twentieth Century Fox “never seriously considered Jackson for the role, which eventually went to Patrick Stewart in a turn that enabled him to be known for a popular character other than Star Trek‘s Captain Picard.”

“Michael was already in the thick of all his allegations by X-Men,” a former executive added.

The upcoming X-Men spin-off movie The New Mutants is still scheduled to be released in theaters on August 28 – watch the opening scene!