Michael Box-Office: Michael Jackson Biopic Sets Record Despite Divisive Score

The highly controversial Michael biopic released to record-breaking box office collections, and it looks like the Lionsgate film won’t stop moonwalking its way to more records. Starring Jaafar Jackson as the Thriller superstar, the movie has already set new benchmarks despite its polarizing reviews online.

Michael has earned $40 million at the domestic box office and is poised to be a hit during the opening weekend across the world.

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) April 25, 2026

What Records Did Michael Break at the Box Office?

The Antoine Fuqua film beat the box office record for the best opening weekend for a music biopic, coming in hot at $13 million for previews alone (via Today). Michael also holds the record for the biggest box office opening day of 2026, earning $40 million in its domestic opening day. The record was previously held by Project Hail Mary. (via Forbes)

With a giant budget of $200 million (original production budget of $155 million, but it grew to approximately $200 million following mandatory reshoots funded by the Jackson estate), the film is produced by the folks behind Bohemian Rhapsody. The Queen biopic similarly opened to record-breaking box office numbers, at $55 million. Looking at the trajectory that many musical biopics have had over the years, Michael will likely beat more records.

The film is now estimated to make $88 million at the domestic box office, beating earlier estimates of $70 million during the opening weekend. Critics are having a field day with Michael, tearing it apart with their reviews, but it appears that this won’t slow the movie down.

Why Michael Is Divisive With Audiences and Fans

Looking at the Rotten Tomatoes scores of Michael is enough to see where critics and audiences stand with the movie. With a 38% Tomatometer score juxtaposing a 97% Popcornmeter score, it’s easy to see that audiences are absolutely loving the new movie.

The Critics Consensus states:

While Jaafar Jackson’s smooth moves bring the King of Pop to uncanny life, this musical biopic mostly plays like a “greatest hits” album that could’ve benefitted from including liner notes to give actual insight into the icon.

Meanwhile, here’s what the audience is saying:

Boosted by stellar performances, most notably Jaafar Jackson’s breakout turn, Michael tops the charts and has fans moonwalking across the globe.

A genuine concern that many are talking about is the complete lack of addressing any controversial part of the singer’s life.

The movie had originally addressed the child s-xual abuse allegations in its third act. However, reshoots were legally mandated after the Jackson estate’s own attorneys belatedly discovered a clause in the 1994 settlement with accuser Jordan Chandler that prohibited his depiction in any film. The Jackson estate funded the reshoots, estimated by Variety at $10-15 million.

Separately, Bloomberg reported that director Fuqua and producer Graham King received additional compensation of $15 million and $10 million, respectively, from the estate, not as payment to suppress the allegations, but as contractual compensation for the disruption to their work and potential impact on box office performance caused by the estate’s own legal oversight.

Here is a snapshot of the Michael Jackson biopic.

Movie	Michael
Director	Antoine Fuqua
Release Date	April 24, 2026
Cast	Jaafar Jackson, Nia Long, Laura Harrier, Juliano Krue Valdi, Miles Teller, and Colman Domingo
Production	Lionsgate

Are we really getting an unbiased look into his life? Let us know what you think.

Michael is currently playing in cinemas across the USA.