Jackson's London return was a concrete production, not a retrospective invention. Contemporary Reuters reporting describes an initial ten-show commitment expanding to fifty dates at the O2 Arena and ticket demand strong enough to sell the run out. Those were planned concerts; they were not fifty performances Jackson completed. Dates were subsequently rearranged, and the planned opening was July 13 when he died in June. [1][2]
The proposed residency joined Jackson's desire to perform with a promoter's investment and expectations of revenue. The family's later civil complaint alleged that the resulting commercial pressure took precedence over his welfare. That is the plaintiffs' case, not a court finding that promoters intentionally killed him. A genuine contractual dispute and a murder conspiracy are different propositions requiring different evidence. [3]
After his death, rehearsal material became the film This Is It. Sony's own announcement identifies AEG figures and estate representatives among those involved in producing it and explains that most material came from June rehearsals in Los Angeles and Inglewood. This makes the footage valuable firsthand performance material with an identifiable commercial and editorial context. [4]
The existence of a profitable posthumous project does not establish that its participants planned a death. It does identify an interest readers should understand when using the finished film as a portrait of Jackson's final weeks. [4]