Michael shows Joe Jackson forming the Jackson 5 in 1966.
The film begins its family story with steel worker Joseph “Joe” Jackson organizing five of his sons into a musical group. The members shown are Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Michael, with Michael taking the lead-vocal role. Their early development is presented as the foundation of Michael’s later career.
The group’s formation date is distinct from the later events that move their career forward. Suzanne de Passe discovers them in Chicago in 1968, and Motown signs them in 1969. Those later dates can make 1966 easy to confuse with the group’s discovery or recording milestones, but the film specifically places Joe’s assembly of the Jackson 5 in 1966.