It may be hard to believe that such an iconic video has taken this long to surpass 1 billion views on YouTube, but that’s what just happened with Michael Jackson‘s “Thriller.”
What’s even more surprising is that this is only the King of Pop’s fourth visual to reach the 1-billion-view mark, after “Beat It,” “Billie Jean” and “They Don’t Care About Us.”
“Thriller,” directed by John Landis and more than a little inspired by his 1981 comedy horror film An American Werewolf in London, is actually a short film. Running more than 13 minutes, it features an intro in which Michael and actress Ola Ray play a couple who are out on a date. Michael tells her, “I’m not like other guys.”
“Of course not,” she replies. “That’s why I love you!” “No, I mean, I’m different,” he says. And as the clouds part and reveal a full moon, she finds out just how different Michael is as he transforms into a terrifying werewolf.
Then, cut to a movie theater, where Michael and Ola are revealed to be watching what we’ve just seen unfold. She leaves because she’s terrified, he follows her, the song starts — and then cue the dancing zombies and that legendary Vincent Price voice-over. There’s also a surprise ending.
The video is also the source of the famous “Michael Jackson eating popcorn” meme.
In May 2009, Ola Ray sued Michael Jackson for royalties connected to her appearance in the video, but he died in June of that year. His estate settled the lawsuit in 2012.
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