Honestly, it is almost impossible to think about 1987 without that subway station. You know the one. The flickering lights, the screeching brakes of the G train, and a leather-clad Michael Jackson leading a literal army of dancers through a series of snaps and spins that changed music forever. The Bad Michael Jackson music video wasn't just a promotional tool for an album. It was an eighteen-minute short film that cost a staggering $2.2 million to produce, which, back in the late eighties, was an absolutely obscene amount of money for a "music video."
Martin Scorsese directed it. Think about that for a second. The guy who gave us Taxi Driver and Raging Bull spent weeks in Brooklyn and at the Hoyt-Schermerhorn Streets station to capture a story about urban tension and identity. It wasn't just about the dancing. It was about Michael trying to prove he was "bad" in a way that felt authentic to his changing public image. He wasn't the "Ben" or "Thriller" kid anymore. He was something sharper. Grittier.
The Scorsese Connection and the Hoyt-Schermerhorn Legacy
When Michael teamed up with Scorsese and novelist Richard Price, he wasn't looking for a quick hit. He wanted cinema. The full version of the video—the one people rarely see on VH1 or YouTube's shortened edits—is a black-and-white drama starring a young Wesley Snipes. This was Snipes' big break. He played Mini Max, the antagonist who challenges Michael’s character, Daryl, to prove he’s still "street" enough after coming home from a fancy private school.
The tension in those early scenes is thick. It’s awkward. It’s real. Price wrote the script based on a true story he’d read about a young man named Edmund Perry, a prep school student who was tragically shot by an undercover cop. While the video pivots into a massive dance number, the underlying theme of "belonging" is what gives the Bad Michael Jackson music video its weight.
Scorsese didn't just point a camera and let Michael dance. He treated it like a feature film. They spent weeks underground. The humidity was brutal. The lighting had to be perfect to capture the transition from the gritty black-and-white reality of the streets to the vibrant, high-contrast color of the musical sequence. Most people don't realize that the "Bad" we know—the one with the buckles and the belts—only kicks in once the music starts. It represents a psychological transformation.
Why the Choreography Changed Everything
You can't talk about "Bad" without talking about Gregg Burge and Jeffrey Daniel. While Michael is the face, these guys helped craft a movement style that was significantly more aggressive than "Beat It." It was sharp. It was staccato. It utilized "power moves" that felt less like disco and more like a street-fight-turned-ballet.
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The "Bad" dance is iconic for a reason:
- The pelvic thrusts that became a MJ signature.
- The formation dancing that influenced every boy band from NSYNC to BTS.
- The use of silence and rhythmic breathing as part of the soundtrack.
If you watch closely, you'll see a level of synchronization that is frankly terrifying. There’s a moment where they all stop on a dime, and the only sound is the echoing of their boots on the subway tiles. That wasn't a studio trick. That was the acoustics of the New York City subway system being used as an instrument.
The Buckles, the Leather, and the Look
People made fun of the buckles. Critics at the time called it "over-the-top." But look at high fashion today. Look at the "street-goth" or "tech-wear" movements. The Bad Michael Jackson music video predicted a specific kind of aggressive, hardware-heavy aesthetic that has recycled through fashion cycles every decade since.
Michael wanted to look tough, but in a theatrical, almost superhero-like way. The multiple belts, the zippers, the black leather—it was a costume designed to catch the light. Every time he turned, something glinted. It made him look larger than life in a cramped, subterranean space. It’s a masterclass in visual branding. He knew that to sell the "Bad" persona, he couldn't just sing it; he had to wear it.
The Wesley Snipes Factor
It is wild to think that Wesley Snipes almost didn't get the part. He has told stories in interviews about how he actually intimidated Michael during the audition process. He stayed in character. He was "street." Michael, who was notoriously shy, was supposedly a bit taken aback by Snipes’ intensity.
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That friction translated perfectly to the screen. When they are standing face-to-face in that station, there is a genuine sense of danger. Snipes brought a level of "cool" that forced Michael to step up his game. Without that specific antagonist, the video might have felt a bit too "theatre kid." Snipes made it feel like a confrontation.
Impact on the Music Industry
Before this video, MTV played clips. After this video, MTV played "events." The premiere of the Bad Michael Jackson music video was a primetime TV special on CBS called Michael Jackson: The Magic Returns. You didn't just watch it; you scheduled your night around it.
This shifted the power dynamic in the industry. It proved that a music video could be a standalone piece of art. It also pushed other artists to spend millions. Madonna, Janet Jackson, and Guns N' Roses all followed this blueprint of the "short film" music video. But "Bad" remains the gold standard because of the sheer pedigree of the talent involved. You had the best director, the best writer, the best dancer, and a future movie star all in one subway station.
Technical Nuance: The Sound of the Subway
If you listen to the extended version of the video, the sound design is incredible. The echoes of the footsteps are amplified. The way the voices bounce off the walls adds to the claustrophopia. This wasn't just a backdrop; the subway was a character.
Scorsese insisted on filming on location for a reason. You can't fake the grime of 1980s New York on a soundstage in California. The grit is under the fingernails of the video. It provides the necessary contrast to Michael’s polished, precise movements. It’s the "high-low" mix that makes the visuals pop.
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Misconceptions About the "Bad" Persona
A lot of people think Michael was trying to be a "gangster." That wasn't it. If you watch the full film, the message is actually the opposite. Daryl (Michael's character) is the one who refuses to participate in a mugging. He chooses the "bad" path of excellence and artistic expression over the "bad" path of crime.
The song's title isn't a boast about being a criminal. It's about being the best. It's about being "bad" in the jazz sense—meaning "good" or "formidable." This nuance is often lost when people only see the four-minute edit on a "Greatest Hits" DVD.
Actionable Takeaways for Media Students and Creators
If you are a filmmaker or a content creator, there is so much to learn from the Bad Michael Jackson music video beyond just the dancing.
- Contrast is Key: Use black-and-white to establish reality, then switch to color (or high energy) to represent a shift in tone or mindset.
- Sound Design Matters: Don't just layer a track over video. Incorporate the "diegetic" sounds—the environment's noise—into the rhythm of the piece.
- Casting is Everything: Don't just hire dancers; hire actors who can challenge the lead. The chemistry between Snipes and Jackson is what makes the stakes feel real.
- Location Authenticity: Whenever possible, film where the story lives. The Hoyt-Schermerhorn station gave the video a soul that a green screen never could.
To truly appreciate the craftsmanship, find the full 18-minute version. Ignore the "Radio Edit." Watch the opening dialogue. Watch the way Scorsese builds the tension until it finally explodes into that first "Who's bad?" It’s a masterclass in pacing that still holds up nearly forty years later.
The legacy of the Bad Michael Jackson music video isn't just in the billion views or the parodies (shoutout to "Weird Al" Yankovic's "Fat," which was filmed on the exact same set). Its legacy is the reminder that pop music can be sophisticated, cinematic, and socially conscious all at the same time.