George Michael: The Faith Tour Film To Bring Lost 1988 Paris Concert To Cinemas

Previously unseen 35mm footage from George Michael’s landmark 1988 Faith Tour has been restored for a worldwide cinema release, preceded by Mary McCartney’s short film Finding Faith.

by Paul Cashmere

A long-lost concert film documenting George Michael’s 1988 Faith Tour performances in Paris will be released in cinemas worldwide on 4 November 2026, bringing newly restored 35mm footage of the singer’s first major solo tour to the big screen.

George Michael: The Faith Tour has been assembled from footage shot across two consecutive concerts at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy on 30 and 31 May 1988. The production used 14 cameras shooting on 35mm film, capturing Michael during the period in which his transition from Wham! star to solo artist was becoming one of the defining stories in popular music.

The film was formally announced on 10 March 2026 by George Michael Entertainment in partnership with Mercury Studios. David Austin and Andy Morahan direct the concert film, with Morahan also directing the original 1988 live shoot.

The Paris performances form the centrepiece of the project, which has been restored and remastered from material that was subsequently regarded as lost. The footage documents Michael at a pivotal point in his career, when the worldwide success of Faith had established him as a major solo recording artist.

The theatrical presentation will begin with Finding Faith, a new short film directed by Mary McCartney. Drawing on newly discovered audio and imagery from 1986 to 1988, the film is intended as an intimate record of the period surrounding the creation and release of Faith.

Finding Faith includes previously unseen photographs of Michael taken by American photographer Herb Ritts, alongside a voice-over interview with Michael and behind-the-scenes material from the production of the Faith music video. The combination provides material from both sides of the public image Michael had developed during the period.

The concert film itself spans Michael’s repertoire from his Wham! years through to the Faith album. It includes performances representing much of the music performed during the tour, placing the Paris concerts within the broader development of his catalogue.

The Faith Tour began in February 1988 and initially ran for nine months, taking Michael through 15 countries before concluding in October. Three additional performances followed in the summer of 1989. It was Michael’s first headlining solo concert tour and came after a period in which Faith had fundamentally changed his position within the international pop market.

Released in 1987, Faith became Michael’s first solo studio album and produced a sequence of major singles, including Faith, Father Figure, I Want Your Sex and One More Try. The album topped charts internationally and established Michael as an artist capable of sustaining a solo career beyond the extraordinary commercial success he had achieved with Wham!

The Paris footage therefore captures more than a concert at the height of a successful tour. It records an artist navigating the transition into a new stage of his career, with material from his previous work and his emerging solo identity occupying the same performance.

George Michael: The Faith Tour is produced by David Austin, Lucie Avery, Rosie Holley and Philip Noel. George Michael Entertainment and Mercury Studios are producing the project in association with Globe Originals.

North American distribution rights were acquired by Bleecker Street in July 2026 through its Crosswalk label, while Universal Pictures Content Group holds international rights. The companies are planning theatrical releases during 2026.

For audiences, the significance of the project rests in the preservation of footage that was not previously available as a completed concert film. Shot at a crucial moment in Michael’s career and restored from original 35mm material, the Paris performances provide a contemporaneous record of the Faith era rather than a retrospective reconstruction.

The Australia cinema release on 6 November will pair that concert footage with McCartney’s Finding Faith, creating a presentation that combines live performance with newly uncovered material from the same formative period.

The project offers a rare opportunity to see George Michael performing during his first solo tour through film captured at the time, rather than relying solely on surviving recordings, photographs and later archival releases.