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

The Sky Arts dramatisation will focus on one of Hollywood's most famous urban legends

(Getty)

It's been a strange week in the world of entertainment, what with Following the influx of news on Daniel Radcliffe's 'farting corpse' film emerging from the Sundance Film Festival, but it's about to get stranger: Joseph Fiennes will play Michael Jackson in a comedy-drama set during 9/11.

You read that correctly.

The actor will star in a one-off Sky Arts dramatisation of the much-discussed Hollywood fable surrounding a car journey with Michael Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor and Marlon Brando that was said to occur after the 2001 terrorist attacks in New York - an event that Vanity Fair reported on 2011.

The story goes that Taylor and Brando were both in the city following an invite to see Jackson perform at Madison Square Garden. Following the tragic event, the three icons rented a car in an attempt to get back to San Francisco. Reportedly, they made it "...as far as Ohio."

Speaking about the project, the Shakespeare in Love actor said: “It’s a fun, lighthearted, tongue-in-cheek road trip of what celebrity of that kind is like. But also it’s rather beautiful and poignant about their relationships.”

Brian Cox is primed to star as Brando while Grease actress Stockard Channing will assume the role of Taylor in a script from Neil Forsyth (Delete This At Your Peril).