Thriller (song) adapted by director John Landis into a highly successful music video, known independently as "Michael Jackson's Thriller". At fourteen minutes, the video is substantially longer than the song and ties together a narrative featuring Jackson and actress Ola Ray in a setting heavily inspired by horror films of the 1950s. In the video's most iconic scene, Jackson leads other actors costumed as zombies in a choreographed dance routine. Though it garnered some criticism for its occult theme and violent imagery, the video was immediately popular and received high critical acclaim, being nominated for six MTV Video Music Awards in 1984
Michael Jackson's Thriller (music video) of not financing music videos itself, instead expecting record companies to pay for them. However, after Showtime, then a new channel, agreed to pay half the budget, MTV agreed to pay the rest, justifying the expenditure as financing for a motion picture and not a music video. MTV paid $250,000 for the exclusive rights to show the documentary; Showtime paid $300,000 for pay-cable rights. Jackson covered additional costs, for which he would be reimbursed. Vestron Music Video offered to distribute "Making Michael Jackson’s Thriller" on VHS and Betamax; this was a pioneering concept, as most videos at the time were