Even with the shoes, the move requires good athletic core strength. In October 1993, Jackson's team patented a method of performing the lean in concert using specially designed shoes that hook into pegs that rise from the stage. The illusion was achieved using cables and a harness. The lean moves the body's center of mass further than it can support. The dancers lean forward 45 degrees with their backs straight and feet flat on the floor, and hold the pose before returning upright. In the video, Jackson and the other dancers perform a lean that appears physically impossible. The video, directed by Colin Chilvers, was shot between mid-February and April 1987 at Culver City, California, and in the backlot at Universal Studios Hollywood and premiered on MTV on the night of October 13, 1988. Jackson's white suit and fedora pay tribute to the Fred Astaire musical comedy film The Band Wagon. Vincent Paterson, who was a lead dancer in the music videos for ' Beat It' and ' Thriller' co-choreographed the 'Smooth Criminal' video with Jackson and Jeffrey Daniel of the soul music group Shalamar. Paterson listened to the unfinished song and came up with the concept of a 1930s gangster club. Jackson asked Vincent Paterson to conceive a concept for the short film. Jackson performing the 'anti-gravity lean' in the 'Smooth Criminal' music video. The song reached number one in Belgium, Iceland, the Netherlands and Spain and the top 10 in Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Switzerland and the UK. It is certified 2x platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, and platinum by the British Phonographic Industry. 'Smooth Criminal' peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the sixth top 10 single from Bad. Trainees learn to say 'Annie, are you OK?' while practicing resuscitation on the dummy. The chorus refrain, 'Annie, are you OK?', was inspired by Resusci Anne, a dummy used in cardiopulmonary resuscitation training. The lyrics describe a narrator who finds a bloodstained carpet and an unconscious body. It is in the key of A minor, and Jackson's vocal spans from G 3 to C 6.

'Smooth Criminal' evolved from an earlier song written by Jackson, 'Al Capone' (named after real life gangster Al Capone), released on the 2012 reissue Bad 25. 'Smooth Criminal' was re-released in 2006 as a single as a part of Jackson's Visionary: The Video Singles boxset. It has appeared on numerous greatest hits albums and was performed on all of Jackson's solo tours. Rolling Stone wrote that it was 'his best blend of R&B groove and rock edginess, and a turning point in his shift toward darker, harder-edged material'. Retrospective reviews have described it as one of Jackson's best songs. The song reached number one in Belgium, Iceland, the Netherlands, and Spain. It was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). (The album's previous single, 'Another Part of Me' peaked at eleven on the Billboard Hot 100.) It reached number two on the Billboard Hot Black Singles chart. 'Smooth Criminal' saw Jackson make a return to top ten in the United States, reaching number seven on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the sixth top-10 single from Bad. In the video, Jackson and the dancers perform an apparently physically impossible 'anti-gravity lean'. The 1930s setting and Jackson's white suit and fedora pay tribute to the Fred Astaire musical comedy film The Band Wagon. The music video for 'Smooth Criminal', which premiered on MTV on October 13, 1988, is the centerpiece of the 1988 film Moonwalker.

The refrain 'Annie, are you OK?' was inspired by Resusci Anne, a dummy used in CPR training. The lyrics address a woman who has been attacked in her apartment by a 'smooth criminal'. It was written by Jackson and produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones.

' Smooth Criminal' is a song by American singer Michael Jackson, released on November 14, 1988, as the seventh single from his seventh album, Bad (1987).

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