Rupert Everett has labelled Michael Jackson a "freak" and claimed that it was "fortuitous" he died when he did because he could never have completed his 50 gigs in London this summer.
The late singer was due to perform the lengthy stints as part of his comeback tour at London's 02 Arena. But Everett believes that the press would have slated Jackson no matter whether it was a success or not.
He explained to the Daily Mirror, "He was a freak. He looked like a character from Shrek. He was a black to white minstrel. He personified the pain and anxiety of a black man in a slave country. We all watched as he changed from black to white. He was a living performance act.
"I think it was fortuitous that he died. He was supposed to a doing 50 concerts in London. It wouldn't have mattered how good or bad he was. He wouldn't have managed to do all of them and the press would have destroyed him."