A newly restored concert film showing George Michael at a defining stage in his career will arrive in cinemas around the world later this year.

George Michael Entertainment, working alongside Mercury Studios and Sony Music Entertainment, has confirmed that George Michael: The Faith Tour will receive a global theatrical release in 2026.

The previously unseen footage was filmed at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy during the European leg of the Faith Tour in 1988. The performance captures the moment when the late pop icon fully established himself as a solo star, a breakthrough that continues to influence music, fashion, and popular culture today.

The film was directed by longtime collaborators Andy Morahan and David Austin, and has been carefully restored and remastered after spending decades believed to be missing.

This release presents George’s original concept with striking clarity, giving viewers a close up yet powerful look at the singer at just 24 years old, confidently commanding both his vocals and the stage.

The footage comes from a 14 camera production shot on 35mm film over two nights. The restored material has now been turned into a full cinematic presentation designed to bring the tour back to life as it was originally intended, honoring a key turning point in George’s career.

The theatrical event will begin with Finding Faith, a new short film created by Mary McCartney. The film explores the cultural importance of the tour and includes George’s own reflections through voiceover taken from a previously unheard interview. It also features rare photographs by Herb Ritts along with behind the scenes footage from the Faith music video.

Alongside the film, George Michael Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment will also release THE FAITH TOUR, an 18 track live album made up of previously unheard recordings from the tour. The collection features performances from both his Wham! era and his solo work, showcasing his remarkable vocal ability and strength as a live performer. Additional details about the album are expected to be revealed soon.

George Michael: The Faith Tour is scheduled to arrive in cinemas worldwide later this year, with specific release dates and territories set to be announced.

The Last Christmas singer died on Christmas Day in 2016 at the age of 53 due to natural causes.

R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe has given a live debut to a new solo song ‘The Rest Of Ever’ on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert – watch below.

The legendary singer has been working on his first full solo album for several years and while he has said in recent weeks that it has taken “longer than I wanted”, he has said he is now adding the finishing touches to the record, and has said it should be out in 2026.

On Thursday (April 23), Stipe appeared on Colbert to play the never-before-heard song ‘The Rest Of Ever’, alongside the house band Louis Cato and The Great Big Joy Machine.

The mature, contemplative track sounds like a slower-tempo version of an outtake from R.E.M.’s ‘Monster’, with Stipe earnestly addressing a loved one, embracing the deep huskiness of his current vocal register.

Watch the performance here:

Also on the show, Stipe attempted to describe the sound of his new album. “One of the songs is the sound of a tree hearing itself for the first time,” he said. “It’s this confusing situation. My friend recorded a tree in my backyard in Georgia and played it back to itself, and so it sounds like Daft Punk, but I’m putting a sea shanty [in the song].”

Colbert then asked which sea shanty it was, to which Stipe said, “It’s the most familiar that everyone knows,” before breaking into ‘Drunken Sailor’.

“The tree has not responded yet,” Stipe added. “We’re gonna let his people get back to my people and see what happens.”

 

Speaking about the album’s delay in March, Stipe said: “Covid didn’t help, but I’m finishing it. When the band split, I just needed a break. I took five years but I got pulled back into music. It’s been a struggle. That’s the main thing. I want it to be great, but I’ve got the pressure of having been in R.E.M. and it’s a high bar, because I want this to be as good as that, and that’s near impossible.”

Previous Stipe solo releases include the 2019 single ‘Your Capricious Soul’ and ‘Drive To The Ocean’ the following year. He also released ‘No Time For Love Like Now’ with Aaron Dessner’s Big Red Machine in 2020.

Last month, he also joined forces with Andrew Watt, Josh Klinghoffer and Travis Barker to share the new theme song for the show Rooster.

By all accounts, Stipe remains on good terms with his former R.E.M. bandmates – guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry – and they appeared together in summer 2024 when they were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

The band split amicably in 2011, while Berry had left the group during the height of their commercial success in 1997. However, at the ceremony, the quartet gave a surprise acoustic performance of their 1991 classic ‘Losing My Religion’. That marked the first time the four played live together since their 2007 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction.

Last month, Stipe joined Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy at one of their ‘Lifes Rich Pageant’ 40th anniversary tour shows in Brooklyn. They played versions of R.E.M.’s ‘These Days’ and ‘The Great Beyond’. A year ago, he also sang ‘Pretty Persuasion’ with them.

Stipe has also been clarifying lyrics from ‘It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)’ on Bluesky, revealing that many fans have been getting some of the lines wrong for decades.

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