Joseph Fiennes to play Michael Jackson in bizarre 9/11 comedy

A 9/11 comedy seems bizarre enough when it involves Michael Jackson, Marlon Brando and Elizabeth Taylor on a fabled road trip following the attack on the twin towers. In the most recent update, Shakespeare in Love actor Joseph Fiennes has landed the role as the King of Pop in the one off, half hour TV film.

The Sky Arts special will also star Stockard Channing as Taylor and Brian Cox as Brando.

The film Elizabeth, Michael, and Marlon, follows the three entertainment icons as they attempt to leave New York after the attacks on the World Trade Center buildings. They aim to drive a rented car to California and manage to make it to Ohio from where they fly the rest of the way.

Confirming the news, a Sky Arts spokesperson said, "Elizabeth, Michael & Marlon is a Sky Arts comedy which takes a light hearted look at a reportedly true event; Joseph Fiennes is cast as Michael Jackson. It is part of a series of comedies about unlikely stories from arts and cultural history."

The script is based on an account by a former employee of Jackson, that the musician had invited Taylor and Brando to a performance of his in New York prior to the 9/11 attack. He was so keen to get out of the city that he rented a car since all flights to and from the city were grounded.

"I got the script the other day. It's a challenge. It's a comedy. It doesn't poke mean fun but it's a story, possibly urban legend," Fiennes told WENN.

"So the three of them got in a car and drove 500 miles to Los Angeles. It took them a while because they had to stop at a lot of Burger Kings for Marlon; but they got out.

"It's a lovely thing about Michael's relationship with Liz Taylor and Marlon Brando. It's a fun, light-hearted tongue in cheek road trip of what celebrity of that kind is like. But also it's rather beautiful and poignant about their relationships as well."

While the film's makers believe there might be some truth to the story, an assistant for Taylor stated that the actress was not involved in the trip, and chose to stay in New York visiting Ground Zero and praying instead.