Ok, so I have been dying to do a post about Teddy Perkins. I can't believe I haven't seen this show back in April when it aired. I only learned about it when Teddy was spotted at the Emmys and someone told me to watch the episode because it was so interesting, so of course I did!
And I was so intrigued by this episode that I watched it like 4 or 5 times now and I will probably watch it a few more times. I think it's a masterpiece. It's complicated, it's extreme and to me it screams Michael. It has different layers as well, which is confirmed by the numerous theories out there about the meaning of the show.
At the end there was a huge surprise for me because it actually implies something I have been saying for a decade and I was surprised this theory popped up here in this episode.
Teddy Perkins is supposedly loosely based on Michael Jackson, but when you watch the episode closely you will actually notice that they even used a picture of Michael in this episode and that there are all kind of little details that will tell you this is not just loosely based on Michael Jackson but that whoever made this, wanted you to think it's Michael Jackson.
I have seen some people say that it's disrespectful to Michael, but I think that whoever says that might not have even the slightest idea who Michael is or what he went through in life and how he dealt with stuff. But that of course is just my opinion.
I will just post some clips and comment in between. It's my own interpretation and I'd really like some input from you guys so please leave your thoughts and theories in the comments, I'd love to read them.
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LoginThe parallels between Michael and Teddy are quite obvious here. Teddy is rich, lives in a big mansion on a gated property, is very soft spoken and the makers clearly made his appearance Michael-like. He is a bit awkward and weird, which is exactly how Michael was viewed later in life. Teddy also says how he loves Stevie Wonder and how 'Music of my Mind' was a masterpiece. Michael loved Stevie and called him a master.
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LoginOk, so that was utterly disgusting. Interesting details though in this part. On the table you can see a glass of what appears to be red wine, even though Teddy asks Darius if he would like some water. Red wine symbolizes life, plus we know that Michael loved his red wine.
There seems to be a deeper, symbolic meaning to this egg and the way Teddy handles it.
He calls the egg an 'owl's casket'. The owl is symbolic for wisdom and knowledge. The casket implies that knowledge is dead or buried. The ostrich was thought of a symbol for truth and purity by the ancient Egyptians. An egg is symbol for fertility or life.
Michael's life was filled with symbolism and since I believe he has had at least a finger in this episode (no pun intended), I believe this scene is important.
The egg symbolizes Michael Jackson's life itself and inside of the egg is knowledge and truth about him but the hard shell makes it impossible for other people to acquire that knowledge and put their finger on the truth.
Teddy first cracks the shell, which could be symbolic for the clues he has left in his life. Small clues that hardly anyone really understood hidden in his lyrics for example.
Then Teddy takes off the top of the egg, letting the egg white, or knowledge, flow out. This might refer to the past 9 years, where lots of new things came to light and lots of things were discovered about Michael's life. But this was just the top of the iceberg, or egg in this case.
Teddy then digs into the egg, taking something out of the core of it, most likely the egg yolk. And I know that the yolk is not the actual ostrich, but it's close enough, pulling out even a baby ostrich would have been slightly difficult. Could this symbolize that Teddy, who clearly is supposed to be Michael, is going to reveal some unknown truth? A secret? And judging by the size of the egg, which seems to be big even for an ostrich egg, maybe a big secret?
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LoginPiano being symbolic for Michael's music, which others seem to control because Teddy didn't even know who put it up the board. The 'audio-visual woman' Teddy refers to might be symbolic for Sony or the music industry in general, as they control the artists once they're signed. The piano being given away for free might be symbolic for the theft Michael spoke out about by the music industry, leaving the artists broke while making billions themselves.
The conversation they have then about Rap music shows the perfectionist that Teddy is and how he views music as an art form. When Darius mentions rap, Teddy says that's a 'funny' one. Teddy thinks rap is not sufficient as an art form and doesn't seem to agree with Darius that you sometimes should just have some fun. I might be grasping at straws here but this reminded me of what Michael said about Eminem's disrespectful and demeaning mock video. Michael called it elementary and said that he hoped Eminem had fun and agrees with Geraldo that it's like a poo poo joke, after clearly having stated that he did not like what Eminem did. So a 'funny one' that he clearly didn't like. I personally believe Michael likes rap. Probably not so much the popular rap like that of Eminem, but I do think he likes rap. So to me this is a reference to Eminem.
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Login When Darius tells Teddy he doesn't play but just liked the way it looked, it might mean that people just simply liked Michael's music without ever bothering to actually listen to it, to his lyrics and to these clues slipping out of the cracked egg. People just want entertainment, they don't want to actually understand the artist.
Then Teddy brings up Benny. It's hard to tell here if Benny is really Teddy's brother or that Teddy is actually Benny hiding behind a mask and a bunch of make-up, because when we see the pictures we only see black people. One of the pictures shown is an actual picture of Michael with Chuck Berry where they photo shopped Michael's face to make him look like someone else. Again a very clear sign that this is really about Michael because why else bother?
When Teddy says that Ahmad Jamal complimented Benny, saying that Benny plays "pain" better than anyone, Teddy seems jealous and says that Benny just played what he knew. Earlier also, the way Teddy asks Darius if he knows Benny Hope, seems to have a jealous undertone. When Darius doesn't seem to know who he is, Teddy seems to lighten up a bit. He talks about the people supposedly in the pictures with his brother, as if they are his own friends. Again making the viewer think Teddy might have some split personality.
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LoginWhen Darius asks Teddy if Benny passed away, Teddy seems a bit disappointed to tell him that Benny is still alive and that he takes care of him. It doesn't look like he is very happy to have him around and having to take care of him. When he explains that Benny has a skin condition that makes him sensitive to sunlight, that that is why the room is so dark and that it's not easy, you get the feeling that Teddy himself is the one with the condition. Benny is nowhere to be found in the room so you would assume he could let in some sunlight when Benny is not in the room. His own pale face only strengthens that theory. Teddy seems to hope that this depressing situation might help them creating a great album one day, a masterpiece. Once more we see that Teddy thinks that music is an art that is not about having fun, but rather that the opposite helps to create the best. Which is honestly true. The most troubled artists have written the best music, just look at Mozart for example.
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Login So it turns out that Teddy has no butler and seems to be all alone in the mansion and the device he was speaking to was actually a recorder to remind himself of simple tasks. This might indicate Teddy has trouble remembering things. Michael seemed to have issues remembering things as well. His defense lawyer in the case against Marc Schaffel even said Michael was "as forgetful as the famously forgetful Albert Einstein". Also when you look up the interview Michael has with authorities in 2007 that was published by The Sun, there seems to be a whole lot of stuff he simply does not seem to remember. Could have been, might have been, I don't know, etc.
The first message is about finishing a hat for Dionne Warwick. I have no idea what the hat might mean, but we know Michael knew Dionne well and according to Dionne, he even called her 'mom'. The second message tells him he needs to wash his hands, immediately. Michael Jwas reported to have been extremely fearful of germs and contamination, so that might be another clue this whole thing is really about him. I am not sure that was ever true though, since there are numerous pictures of Michael holding all kinds of animals I doubt a person with that phobia would hold. But it was reported and I believe this is more about his public persona than himself. So I'd say definitely another clue.
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LoginJust as Michael's, Teddy's house is full of security camera's. Teddy seems to follow his every move on them. The books in the house seem dusty. Knowing that Michael Jackson read lots of books, that seems to be the only thing off so far. When Darius follows the sound of the piano we see even more pictures that remind us of Michael. One with Clinton and one completely covered in a wheelchair.
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LoginTeddy opens the door before Darius can even knock, clearly confirming that Teddy has been watching with his security camera's. Darius seems suspicious that he can't see Benny or the piano when Teddy says Benny needs some rest. Looking into the room he sees the empty wheelchair behind the piano. It's starting to seem more and more that Benny doesn't exist at all.
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LoginThis scene showcases perfectly the ridicule that Michael went through. Being called names, laughed at, ridiculed yet people wanted something from him because they liked it: his music. The reference to Sammy Sosa, who voluntarily bleached his own skin, shows the ignorance of people concerning Michael's vitiligo. With still many people, to this day, believing he didn't want to be black and bleached his own skin even though he went on national television explaining he suffered from vitiligo.
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LoginWhen Darius enters the room, Teddy makes a picture of him. This is a very interesting clue, maybe one of the most important ones in understanding Michael. When the picture is made, Darius actually freaks out a bit and says he's not a big photo person. Anyone who has seen the 2017 movie 'Get Out' might catch the reference here. Lakeith (who plays Darius), played a mind controlled slave in the movie 'Get Out'. When a picture is taken of him with flash, he glitches out of his mind controlled state and warns the guy about to be sucked into this evil shit to 'Get Out' while he still can. He is then taken inside to be 'reprogrammed' back into his mind controlled state. Teddy, who is representing Michael, is flashing Darius, who is representing the ignorant public that is being mind controlled by media and television as we have seen in the previous scene. In my opinion implying that Michael is trying to get the public out of their zombie like state, back into using their heads. What I didn't figure out is why Darius is shown on the picture making an X in front of his head with his arm while we can see in the scene he never lifts his arms that way. If you have an idea, please share!
The merchandise with the young Michael Jackson lookalike on it should have every Michael Jackson fan raise at least one eyebrow. Just like there are plans to turn Neverland into a museum, Teddy wants to turn their mansion into a museum. He is actually excited to show Darius his stuff and tells him he can take anything he likes. Michael is known for giving stuff away for free to people who like his stuff. But Darius only sees Teddy's weirdness and not his kindness. He wants to get the hell out of there. In a last attempt Teddy asks him to please go with him because he wants to show him something. It's like Michael saying "I promise you that you can have my music, but please hear me out first. And I can't help but wonder if those are Oscars in the cabinet...
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Login I find this scene heartbreaking. Teddy opens up to Darius by explaining to him what happened when he and his brother (who we still haven't seen yet by the way) were just little kids. Hours a day of practice and physical punishment if they didn't do well enough. To me it is no coincidence Joe Jackson is named first, before the other fathers who sacrificed their children. When I listen to Teddy I hear him say "my father; Joe Jackson and not "my father, Joe Jackson". I have seen theories about this scene online where people speculate that Teddy is actually the father and Benny the son. They claim that Teddy is glorifying himself as the father and is trying to seek validation from Darius in that way. But I do not hear Teddy say that his father was a good father, or that it was right what his father did. Or that he is happy that his father did all that to him. All Teddy says is that as a result of his father beating him and his brother, pushing them to be the best (not only at music, but at life, they have all that fame and fortune. He says he is not mad at his father, because as a child he could not understand why his father did what he did, but as an adult he understands that his father wanted the best for him. He does not condone his methods. He actually says his father sacrificed them, which can hardly be called positive. When you listen to Michael during his Oxford speech in 2001, you can hear him say the same in different wording. As an adult and being a father himself, he understands his father. While Teddy is trying to explain, Darius gets impatient and loses interest in the rest of Teddy's story. That is similar to what happened to Michael, the public would hear him out on his father's abuse, have all kinds of opinions on it and would go back to the music, without really listening and understanding or willing to dig a little deeper. Teddy looks disappointed Darius cuts off his story and seems to accept that Darius just wants the piano.
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LoginDarius might feel bad for being so impatient with Teddy as he sees Teddy's disappointment. He tries to be understanding but for Teddy that is too late. "No you don't!" He shouts at him, clearly upset. Darius can't imagine at all because he didn't want to understand, didn't want to take the time to listen to Teddy, so for Teddy this sudden sympathy is phony. He is mad at Darius as can be seen when he hits the piano as he walks out of the room. He is genuinely angry with Darius for not wanting to listen to the full story. This is what Michael must have felt when the public, his fans were not interested in really listening to his message, his story.
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LoginDarius can't wait to get away with the piano. The elevator takes him to the mansion's basement though and will not go back up so he is forced to take a peek. in that basement where he finds wheelchair bound Benny. We can't see Teddy anymore though and Benny seems to be wearing the same outfit as Teddy, only he is wearing a mask and a hat so his face is concealed. According to Benny, Teddy will kill them both so Darius needs to go get a gun from the attic. Darius asks why Benny won't get it himself and Benny obviously points towards his wheelchair and Darius walks off.
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Login Darius wants to get the hell out of this shit and takes the piano outside. But Teddy sabotaged him by parking his car right behind his truck, making it impossible for him to leave. Darius is forced to go to Teddy to ask him to move his car. On his way up he brings one of the pokers he finds right at the fireplace.
Upstairs he finds Teddy watching an old home videos, a nice reference to Michael's home video series if you ask me. Teddy seemed to have cooled off a bit and asks Darius what's wrong. Darius brings up the car. Teddy asks then if there is anything else, and Darius asks where the bathroom is. It's like Teddy wanted to give him one last chance to ask about Teddy's story, but he realizes Darius is not interested. He tells him where the bathroom is: right next to the attic where Teddy already found the gun which he aims at Darius. He congratulates Darius because he chose Darius to be his sacrifice. He tells Darius to put his phone on the ground but to keep the poker because he wants it to look like a home invasion by an obsessed fan of Benny's who killed him. Darius says that there is no fucking Benny and Teddy confirms that, twice, leaving the viewer to think that Teddy indeed has a split personality.
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LoginThey walk back downstairs and Teddy lets Darius sit down in one of the 2 chairs next to the fireplace and lets him cuff himself, ankles and wrists. Teddy then puts his gun down. In a last attempt Darius tries to connect with Teddy, says that not all great things come from great pain, sometimes it's love. And that not everything is a sacrifice. Teddy tells him that sacrifices are necessary. Darius says his dad should have said sorry, and that he is sorry. He then tells Teddy about his own daddy issues and how he thought that was ok when he was a kid but that it's not an excuse to grow up and repeat the same shit over and over. Asks Teddy what if he would have been great at something else, or would have seen love, instead of all the other shit like Stevie Wonder. Teddy says that Stevie had his own sacrifices, that he was blind and Darius then says that Stevie saw through his music. Teddy says that's beautiful, but wrong.
Then they hear the elevator come up and lo and behold, Benny comes out in a bloody white shirt. So there was a brother after all! Benny then grabs the gun that Teddy put down, shoots Teddy and wheels over to Darius, who is now apologizing to Benny for what he went through. Benny points to the poker that Darius still has with him and then uses the poker to shoot himself through the head with the shotgun.
The last scene shows Darius in his truck looking back at the authorities taking both the bodies and the piano out of the house. For the first time he seems genuinely upset about all he had witnessed. Stevie Wonder's 'Evil' ends the episode.
My theory about Teddy Perkins is this:
1. Teddy Perkins and Benny Hope do not exist.
2. Teddy has vitiligo, not Benny.
3. Benny is a burn victim.
4. Both of them were equally famous.
5. Teddy is Michael Jackson.
6. Benny is also Michael Jackson.
7. Neither of them died.
Let me try to explain…
1.
Teddy Perkins and Benny Hope do not exist. Teddy claims that his brother Benny Hope is THE famous pianist. And he isn’t just claiming it, he has receipts. The whole house is full of pictures of Benny with famous musicians and even Bill Clinton. Yet Darius seems to have no idea who Teddy is talking about, but he does recognize all the others in the pictured. Darius does not seem to recognize Teddy either. Later on Darius even says that there is ‘no fucking Benny Hope’ which Teddy confirms….twice! Now you can say that Teddy said that because he thought that he had killed Benny and therefor there was no Benny Hope anymore. I’ll come back to that later. But if benny would have been so famous that he would have a need to turn his mansion in a museum, have all this merchandise and all these famous friends then you would assume Darius would have recognized something. But he doesn’t. Teddy Perkins and Benny Hope are aliases, they do not exist.
2.
Teddy has vitiligo, not Benny.Not Benny, but Teddy is the one who has the rare skin condition that makes him sensitive to light. Teddy is downstairs where the windows are covered and has a very pale complexion. If Benny is upstairs and Teddy is not sensitive to sunlight, then why is he still sitting there with the windows covered. You would think he would just open the curtains for a little while as long as Benny is not around, certainly when he has a guest.
3.
Benny is a burn victimWhen we meet Benny he is wearing a mask and a hat. If the windows are already covered everywhere in the house, then why would he need to wear a mask? Not just that, the mask Benny is wearing is not just a regular face mask, it is a compression mask that is used for burn victims. After Michael’s hair caught fire during the filming of the Pepsi commercial, he lost a big chunk of skin on his head as can be seen on pictures that were released. To be able to stretch the skin so that the wound could close better, Michael has had so called balloons under his skin. Because of that, he wore a similar hat in white to cover that up for a while.
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4.
Both of them were equally famous.The show suggests that Benny was the big celebrity while Teddy was just his brother taking care of him. But the details tell a different story. Teddy makes a hat for Dionne Warwick and seems to be friends with Stevie Wonder so we have to ask ourselves if he is really just some unknown brother. It is also clear that their father sacrificed BOTH of them, that they BOTH had to practice that much. ‘Because of him WE have all of this.’ Is what Teddy says. Nowhere in the episode does it seem like only Benny was the artist.
5.
Teddy is Michael Jackson.As we have already established that ‘Teddy Perkins’ does not exist, then who is it? Because Joe Jackson is mentioned in the episode, we know for a fact that Darius is living in the same universe as we, and that Michael Jackson is real in his world. All the signs point to him being Michael, even the smallest details, his friends, his hunchback, his troubled past, his vitiligo and even his loafers. But now who would Darius not recognize Michael Jackson? Because Teddy wears a prosthetic mask, it’s simple as that. Michael’s way of disguising himself.
6.
Benny is also Michael Jackson.Yes. Benny is also Michael Jackson. Benny is the secret brother. The other Michael Jackson. The one that has not been seen for a while. He looks like “The Invisible Man” for a reason. Benny and Teddy wear the exact same clothes, have the same hair, the same loafers. Benny is the Michael that has the Pepsi burn, which is why he is wearing the compression mask. Of course his face was not burned but it’s to make it more obvious. Remember the autopsy report: it listed vitiligo but NO SCAR from the Pepsi burn. The Pepsi burn happen January 27th, 1984. Yet on February 7th, 1984 we see Michael (Teddy) up and about at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Natural History to receive awards from CBS and ’The Guinness Book Of World Records’.
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Neither of them died. The clue to this can be found when Teddy suddenly opens the door when Darius walks upstairs after hearing the piano play. Watch that again after reading the following.
The piano keeps playing until the moment the door opens. It would have been impossible for Teddy to have been playing the piano and getting to the door in a nanosecond, but it would also have been impossible for Teddy to stab Benny, get him out of the wheelchair and open the door in that same nanosecond. The only 2 other options are that someone else stabbed Benny and took him out of the wheelchair before Darius peeks in, or Benny was never stabbed and stood up quickly himself to hide from Darius. Since there are no indications whatsoever in the whole episode that there is another person in the mansion, it looks like the latter has to be true. Benny was never stabbed by Teddy and was never wheelchair bound.
Teddy and Benny planned this together from the start to fool Darius (the public). They placed the ad on the message board. It’s why the elevator went to the basement even though Darius clearly pushed 1. We know the elevator works fine because in the end Benny comes out of the elevator that stopped at the first floor. It is why Teddy coincidentally found the gun that Benny told Darius to get. It’s why Darius needed to keep the poker with him, Benny needed it later on. It’s why Teddy let Darius cuff himself, he never intended to kill Darius or set him up to a crime. It’s why Teddy put the gun down and gave Benny enough time to grab it, even though he was warned in time by the sound of the elevator and could have gotten it himself. It is why the wheelchair was empty when Darius peeked in the room. It’s also why the books were dusty, Michael never lived there, the house was rented. And I bet there are way more clues but I’ll keep it at that for now. And yes the shots looked real to Darius. But when you’re shook up like that you don’t see details. So Darius might have missed some movie magic. My mind wonders back off to that cabinet…. Were those Oscars?
Now that would be a big secret, wouldn’t it? Have you seen the size of that egg though…?
Piece by piece by piece…
As to give this theory extra credibility, Teddy actually returns in the flesh months later and is seen at the Emmys. Up to this day, no one seem to know who was under the mask. As for the other Teddy, who we see in the actual show, when the episode was filmed, no one knew who was under the mask either. Makes you think, no?
Donald Glover seems to know an awful lot about Michael Jackson. You’d almost build a new conspiracy around THAT!
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