Global premieres for Michael Jackson film

This Is It, the film showing the late Michael Jackson's rehearsals for his planned tour, is to have simultaneous premieres in more than 15 cities across the world.

The Odeon in Leicester Square, London, will host a premiere at 01:00 on Wednesday October 28th to coincide with the 18:00 Los Angeles premiere on October 27th while there will be simultaneous showings in New York, Rio De Janeiro, Berlin, Johannesburg, and Seoul.

There will also be non-simultaneous premiere activities in several other cities, including Moscow, Tokyo, Sydney and Paris.

'Michael Jackson has an army of fans everywhere around the world,' said Jeff Blake, chairman of worldwide marketing and distribution for Sony Pictures.

'By rolling out this film simultaneously worldwide, we are giving audiences an incredible opportunity to join together in celebration of Michael Jackson's incredible career.'

Directed by High School Musical helmer Kenny Ortega, This Is It is based on more than 100 hours of footage from the rehearsals held for Jackson's planned 50 dates at the O2 Arena in London.

The film will go on general release in cinemas on October 28th for a two-week run, with tickets on sale on September 27th.