Yahoo Movies Jason Bateman says he nearly 'ran over' Michael Jackson with his bicycle as a kid
It turns out Jason Bateman and Rick Schroder weren't exactly the most smooth criminals as kids.
Bateman has revealed that the pair once nearly "ran over" Michael Jackson with their bicycles while the King of Pop was visiting the set of their sitcom Silver Spoons back in the '80s.
The Ozark star explained that the incident occurred while he and Schroder were on a break from filming and riding around the show's set.
"This is while we were doing Silver Spoons at Universal and we'd need to have our bikes because kids gotta play," Bateman told Jimmy Kimmel on Friday's episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live. "Michael was there to see [Schroder]."
The actor then paused his story to give the crowd an apprehensive look — seemingly a subtle nod to the child sexual abuse allegations against Jackson that eventually surfaced — which caused them to respond in shock and awe and with some laughter.
"I don't — listen, hey!" Bateman replied, raising his hands in the air. "He was a fan of the show and a fan of the Ricker!"
Jimmy Kimmel/ABC; Frank Edwards/Fotos International/Getty Jason Bateman says he nearly ran over Michael Jackson with his bike as a kid.
But not even being a fan of the show could keep Jackson from almost getting clipped by Bateman and Schroder's wheels. As Bateman recalled, "[Jackson] was coming onto the stage while we were zooming off and almost took him down." Jackson was ultimately able to moon-walk away from the incident without any harm.
Schroder starred as lovable lead Ricky in the NBC family comedy, which centered around the father-son dynamic between him and his wealthy socialite dad Edward Stratton III (Joel Higgins). For its first two seasons, Bateman played Ricky's best friend, Derek Taylor. After Bateman's departure, Alfonso Ribeiro took over as Ricky's BFF for the remainder of the series.
Discover the countless other stars Bateman has met throughout his career in the video above.
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