It was the first music video to be selected. The Rig is a horror thriller series arriving on Amazon Prime Video in early 2023. "Everyone experiences these physical transformations in their bodies and new, unfamiliar sexual thoughts in their minds. It's dark and striking and fits perfectly with the song. Thriller is a British television series, originally broadcast in the UK from 1973 to 1976. at the Disco's first music video features a wedding where the bride's family is asleep and have their faces and eyelids painted. In 1984, Making Michael Jackson's Thriller won the Grammy Award for Best Video Album, and in a 1999 end-of-the-century countdown, MTV named "Thriller" the #1 music video of all time. Then it shifts to the musicians performing on stage. Some music videos are more memorable than others. And people have been copying it ever since.". There's also a memorable scene of her covered in diamonds. The stories were often set in the London commuter belt. Every Beyonc video deserves a spot on this list, but "Single Ladies" has a special legacy. He was tortured, but he was happy-go-lucky for a lot of it. [29], Jackson's red leather jacket became a fashion icon and has been widely emulated. [14] According to Landis, the production involved the largest makeup team in film history up to that point, with 40 makeup artists. Other videos that featured highly in yesterday's poll included Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody at No. "Thriller" was a watershed moment in music video. From "Leave it to Beaver" to Marilyn Manson to Bill Clinton to "The Brady Bunch," Eminem doesn't hold back on pop culture references or the barbs he makes in his lyrics. The trivia item below may give away important plot points. [6] According to Peter Dendle, the zombie invasion sequence was inspired by Night of the Living Dead (1968). Recorded as a cover for the movie "Moulin Rouge," the four women appeared in the video. It continuously shifts through a series of triangles shifting between images of Meg and Jack White playing instruments. [8] After originally being screened late at night in the U.S. under the ABC Wide World of Entertainment billing from 1973, some episodes were retitled for U.S. syndication in 1978, and all had additional opening sequences shot with new titles and credits but without the original cast and, for this reason, often only featuring menacing figures seen from the neck down. [8], In 2009, Landis sued Jackson in a dispute over royalties for the video, saying Jackson had failed to pay him 50% of the proceeds. That's a pretty serious statement, and one that makes the silly horror movie-inspired fun to follow seem like it's going to be a lot darker and menacing than it is. However, Epic wouldn't pay for it the label spent $250,000 on the video for "Billie Jean" but made Jackson pay the $150,000 budget for "Beat It" himself. Throw Katy Perry and her dancers in clothing covered in sweets, dress Snoop Dogg in a cupcake suit, make the setting a board game called Candyfornia, and you've got yourself the basis of the "California Gurls" video. It's a moot point whether or not a bit of fear does them any harm in the long term. On June 27, 2011, the red jacket Jackson wore in this video sold for 1.8 million dollars at Julien's Auctions of Beverly Hills. Nevertheless, the Thriller video was set to be so expensive $900,000, to pay for not just the filming and effects but 10 days of dance rehearsals that Landis and Jackson had to find a way to fund it (Jackson had paid the $150,000 cost of the Beat It video himself). Unpredictable crime thriller. "Due to my strong personal convictions," the disclaimer credited to Michael Jackson reads, "I wish to stress that this film in no way endorses a belief in the occult." "The Thriller video became a worldwide megahit and an iconic pop culture phenomenon that has continued to generate profits for defendants Optimum Productions and Michael Jackson, who have wrongfully refused to pay or account for such profits to plaintiff," the suit read (via The Guardian). Contents 1 Background 2 Releases 2.1 Hosted by Elvira 2.2 Non-Elvira releases 3 References 4 External links Background [ edit] Thriller was the biggest recording artist in the world at the time working with probably the biggest director and it was an amalgamation of the two talents. Ending with Alice as a cake that the Mad Hatter and friends consume and a small burp from Petty is just the cherry on top. I want to do what's right. The video was a bit controversial for its sexual visuals. "[11], Ola Ray also complained of problems collecting royalties. I don't think we had video recorder then. ", The sound of the growling animal during the transformation is the same sound from. It was the first music video to be selected. The "Life on Mars" music video was filmed for the song's release as a single. [9][14] Brian Clemens' own favourite episode, "A Coffin for the Bride" (US: Kiss Kiss, Kill Kill), featured a performance from a young Helen Mirren.[15]. He grooves on an escalator, he flies in the air, he shimmies in the lobby. [8] Jackson covered additional costs, for which he would be reimbursed. It took videos to another level, but in my world and in the world of artists I was dealing with, it's almost like it didn't relate.". They talk through their problems with friends and ultimately decide that neither of them will date him. Here, in no particular order, are the eight best thrillers on Prime Video. She was the mother of the character Ken Reeves from the TV Show "The White Shadow". She has visions of her dead lover in the mansion and remembers moments when they were together. [12] Perhaps the most ingenious[editorializing] episode is the Dial M for Murder-style "The Double Kill", in which a man hires a hitman to kill his wife, but makes a fatal error in his otherwise meticulous planning. Could you want anything more in a video? The Pale Blue Eye (2022) Image via Netflix. "Thriller was important because it was the first time anything this ambitious had ever been attempted," a spokesperson for VH1 said yesterday. "Thriller," of course, came from the Michael Jackson album also called Thriller. Much of Cher's body is exposed and both she and the Navy received criticism for it. In January 2009, nearly three decades after production on the video wrapped, Landis sued Jackson and his production company for having failed to fork over what was due over the years. It shows Michael turning into a zombie and dancing in the street with some spectacular choreography. The scene where he's the only man looking at the camera as men around him bob their heads is striking, but even more notable is the scene where his head is on fire as he's surrounded by men with their heads wrapped in burning rope. The big turning point was Thriller.". The video for "Seven Nation Army" is a kaleidoscopic, trippy series of shots. Here are 55 of the most iconic music videos of all time. They run naked on a beach, they wear ridiculous outfits, and they rock out in front of crowds of people. The first thing he said to me when he came out of school was 'Are zombies real, mum?'. Unbreakable. Michael Jackson: Thriller Music Video 1983 PG 13 m IMDb RATING 8.7 /10 18K YOUR RATING Rate Horror Music A night at the movies turns into a nightmare when Michael and his date are attacked by a hoard of bloodthirsty zombies - only a "Thriller" can save them now. After falling asleep and dreaming that a saint statue turned into the man, she wakes up, goes to the prison, and tells them that the man is innocent. [14] He initially imagined the werecat would resemble a black panther, but added a longer mane and larger ears. They walk into the forest, and Jackson asks her to be his girlfriend; she accepts. But the image forever in people's minds is Lopez dancing around in the forest with green lasers behind her. In 2013, she settled with the Jackson estate for $75,000. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. Jackson's character takes his date (Ola Ray) to a horror movie and then makes her life into one when he transforms into a monstrous creature and leads a horde of other scary creatures both ghoulish and undead. [1] It is an anthology series: each episode has a self-contained story and its own cast. [35] It was remastered in IMAX 3D for a limited engagement in 2018, preceding screenings of The House With a Clock in Its Walls in North America for its first week. She and other dancers groove and show off their moves throughout the video. The bride leaves the altar, and when the groom follows, he sees her making out with one of the guests outside. Connections [23], Michael Jackson's Thriller was named the "greatest video" by MTV in 1999,[24] and by VH1[22] and Time in 2001. Trudy Bellinger was studying art in Brighton when it first shown and it inspired her to start making music films herself. The Gorillaz are known for their animations, but it all started with their first single from their debut, "Clint Eastwood." Directed by Colin Trevorrow. Inspired by the reaction to the Beatles performance on "The Ed Sullivan Show," "Hey Ya!" From the first moment doves fly through a door and a camera zooms in on Prince in a bathtub, viewers know that the video is not going to be simple. She won the MTV award for video of the year. He's taking things to a whole new place. Part of a longer movie, the "Runaway" music video features Kanye West playing a white piano as a ballet troupe dressed all in black dance near him. The cat's dance moves even mirror her's. 8 Say You . And then there's the wild action sequence in a futuristic Paris where she poisons her unfaithful boyfriend. [8], Thriller was filmed at the Palace Theatre in downtown Los Angeles, the zombie sequence at the junction of Union Pacific Avenue and South Calzona Street in East Los Angeles, and the final house scene at 1345 Carroll Avenue in the Angeleno Heights neighborhood of Echo Park. Michael Jackson - Thriller (Official 4K Video) Michael Jackson 27.3M subscribers Subscribe 6.6M Share 887M views 13 years ago #Halloween #MichaelJackson #4kRemastered Michael Jackson's official. I didn't have this thought intellectually at the time, but when I watch it now I realise that there's no reason for a lot of it; it's so free and loose. "Thriller" also helped steer toward importance and bring a new standard operating protocol to another kind of video home video. The video does feature a couple of clips of her walking through Parc de Saint-Cloud in Paris, but the emotional close-ups are the most striking parts. One exception was the story "Nurse Will Make It Better"; however, this too exists in PAL/original format on the later 1" videotape format as a dub from the original master tape (this version was broadcast on the satellite channel Bravo in 1996). It's easy to overlook this fact, but M. Night . Kate Bush's "Wuthering Heights" has two iconic videos. The band's front man lifts a bus up off a girl at some point and saves a dog from a fire. After production on the video wrapped, Jackson was told by leaders of his church (Jackson was a practicing member of the Jehovah's Witness faith) that they thought "Thriller" encouraged demon worship, and if it were released, he'd be excommunicated. Filmeditor Marshall Harvey had previously been hired by John Landis to make the behind the scenes footage to his movies An American Werewolf in London and Blues Brothers. Some music videos are more memorable than others. Six Girls Aloud videos later and Thriller is still part of Bellinger's life. I was yet another taper of the original Channel 4 broadcast. There's a lot to process. According to The Guardian, Jackson made up a lot of the difference out of his own pocket. "[8] Jackson's manager Frank DiLeo suggested making a music video for it, and recalled telling Jackson: "It's simpleall you've got to do is dance, sing, and make it scary. Tom Petty channeled "Alice in Wonderland" for the "Don't Come Around Here No More" music video. We can only really go by the experience of our own DCs, though. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is considered one of the greatest songs of all time, and the video is a testament to the song as a teen rock anthem. Crazy Credits 9 with Earth Song from his 1996 album HIStory. She ends up shoving him out of a car and leaving him in the dust and goes into a rebellious phase. Epic saw it as a novelty song;[9] Yetnikoff asked, "Who wants a single about monsters? But then there's also some random dance scenes with her on a boat. The video starts in black-and-white as Whitney Houston finishes a show and heads backstage. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. Many elements of Michael Jackson's Thriller have had a lasting impact on popular culture, such as the zombie dance and Jackson's red jacket, designed by Landis's wife Deborah Nadoolman. It's incredibly simple, with David Bowie just standing in front of a white background for most of it, but with his orange hair, powder blue suit, and blue eye shadow, the visuals are vibrant and mesmerizing. It was shown on Channel 4 in November 1983 at something like 1 in the morning, as I remember sitting up waiting for it to come on and then being amazed and a little bit scared as I was only 13 at. [8], In June 1983, Thriller was displaced from the top of the Billboard 200 chart by the Flashdance soundtrack. The premise of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" music video is fairly straightforward. [13], Other memorable episodes include: "Someone at the Top of the Stairs", one of a handful of forays into the supernatural, in which two female students move into a boarding house and begin to notice that none of the other residents ever go out or receive any mail; and "I'm The Girl He Wants to Kill", in which a witness to a murder finds herself trapped in a deserted office block overnight with the killer, and is forced to play a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with him to survive (there is barely any dialogue throughout its second half). However Harvey declined and then suggested another director who did in the end make the documentary. The legendary video has been honored countless times. The trailer for the new TV show, which launched at 3pm on March 1, introduces Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas' characters, Nadia Sinh and Mason Kane, across multiple high-octane action sequences. "When you're making music videos, it's like you're a tailor; you cut the suit to fit your model and the artist you're working with. Most of the video is a close-up shot of Sinad's face as she sings the song. Thriller is a British television series, originally broadcast in the UK from 1973 to 1976. | It was filmed at various locations in Los Angeles, including the Palace Theater. [10], In 1984, the National Coalition on Television Violence (NCTV) reviewed 200 MTV videos and classified more than half as too violent, including Thriller. The success transformed Jackson into a dominant force in global pop culture. The flipside of all these interviews, sessions and phone footage is that it takes the heat off music videos, making the traditional performance video completely redundant. My Chemical Romance is on a float leading the parade of masked figures in what looks to be a wasteland. In 2006, the Guinness World Records listed it as the "most successful music video of all time. "I auditioned a lot of girls and this girl Ola Ray first of all, she was crazy for Michael," Landis said. The music video director Brian Grant credited Thriller as the turning point when music videos became a "proper industry". Why did you need to stay up late if you were 'tape'ing it? Michael Jackson seems like this kid who loves music, horror films, special effects, makeup, zombies and wants all of those things in the video. One such kid was Spike Jonze, who was 14 in 1983. Directed by Spike Jonze ("Her"), the "Buddy Holly" video places the band in Arnold's Drive-In from the show "Happy Days." The pair conceived a short film with a budget much larger than previous music videos. Michael Jackson's Thriller is a 1983 music video for the song "Thriller" by the American singer Michael Jackson, released on December 2, 1983. He took both "Beat It" and "Billie Jean" to #1, debuted his signature "Moonwalk"dance move to stunned and delighted fans, sold millions of copies of his album Thriller, and then starred in one of the most popular, famous, and well-produced music videos of all time. If youd like to join in, please sign in or register. It ends with the groom as the actual ringmaster. Each girl shows off her personality as they move throughout the hotel, making a mess and causing general chaos. The "All the Small Things" video is a hilarious parody of other boy bands and pop artists of the '90s. It won the MTV video of the year award. ", Jonze took the freedom he sensed in Thriller and also its eccentricity and humour and ran with it, creating some of the 90s' most famous music videos, including the Beastie Boys' Sabotage and Praise You by Fatboy Slim, which also get continually spoofed. Certainly the largest example of the phenomenon:In 2009, 13,957 people in Mexico performed the "Thriller" dance all at once, setting a Guinness World Record. [8], According to Landis, when he called Yetnikoff to propose the film, he swore so loudly he had to remove the phone from his ear. ThrillerVideo ThrillerVideo was a horror home video series that began being released in February 1985 to 1987 by U.S.A. Home Video and International Video Entertainment (I.V.E.). "She had such a great smile. '"[20], The Thriller video sealed MTV's position as a major cultural force, helped disassemble racial barriers for black artists, revolutionized music video production, popularized making-of documentaries, and drove rentals and sales of VHS tapes. Love it or hate it, labels are obsessed with it and it's here to stay. To be eligible for the Oscars, it needed a week-long theatrical release, so Landis arranged for it to open, bizarrely, for Disney's Fantasia at a single cinema in LA. 3 Take On Me A-ha. In July 1983, after Thriller was displaced from the top of the chart, Jackson's manager Frank DiLeo suggested making a music video for "Thriller". ", $1.8m The amount Texan gold trader Milton Verrett paid for Jackson's red jacket from the video at auction in June 2011, 26ins The size of Jackson's waist at the time of filming, according to Landis's wife Deborah, who designed the red jacket, $1m Estimated sum in unpaid royalties for which Landis sued Jackson in 2009, 13,597 The number of people who performed the Thriller zombie dance together at an event organised by the Instituto de la Juventud del Gobierno del Distrito Federal at the Monumento a la Revolucin, Mexico City, on in August 2009, 156.4m The number of YouTube views of the official posting of the Thriller video, 9.5m Total home video and DVD sales of The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller, The John Landis-directed mini-movie first shown publicly 30 years ago this week influenced a generation of directors including Spike Jonze, turned music promos into an industry, and established MTV as a cultural force, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, Michael Jackson's impact on art explored in London show, John Landis on the making of Michael Jacksons Thriller: I was adamant he couldnt look too hideous, Quincy Jones sues Michael Jackson's estate, Who's bad?