Story perspectives

‘Michael’ Hits $200M Weekend, Critics Slam Abuse Omission

4/26/2026

Summary

Lionsgate Forecasts $100M Opening

Lionsgate says “Michael” will earn $90 million-$100 million in its first week, including $12 million from pre-weekend screenings.
Opening-day Friday generated about $39.5 million.
Worldwide estimates put the opening weekend at $200 million, ranking the film among the Top 5 musical biopics and beating “Straight Outta Compton’s” $201 million total.
Critics have panned the movie, with Rolling Stone noting omission of Jackson’s sexual-abuse accusations and director Dan Reed warning it could mislead viewers about his behavior toward children.

Summary

Fuqua Refocuses Film

Director Antoine Fuqua reshaped the film to focus on Michael Jackson's relationship with his father after a settlement barred mention of the 1993 abuse accusation.
The production budget was $155 million, driven by music-rights fees and elaborate concert sets.
The Jackson estate added tens of millions to replace the unusable third act.
The cast includes Colman Domingo as Joe Jackson, Nia Long as Katherine Jackson, and Jaafar Jackson as Michael.

Summary

Michael Sets Records

“Michael” set opening-weekend records in 63 of 64 territories, with the United Kingdom leading at $13.8 million.
Lionsgate reported the film as its biggest opening since “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2” and its highest-grossing non-franchise film ever.
Nearly half of ticket sales came from premium formats such as IMAX, showing strong demand for an immersive experience.
The audience was 61% female, with 38% Black and 26% Latino/Hispanic viewers.

History

Historical Context

When 20th Century Fox released the Freddie Mercury biopic *Bohemian Rhapsody* in November 2018, the film earned $910.8 million worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing musical biopic and Fox’s final solo Oscar-nominated picture before Disney’s March 20 2019 acquisition. Its blockbuster success spurred studios such as Lionsgate to pursue similarly costly music-biopic projects, betting on premium-format global revenues.

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Lionsgate Forecasts $100M Opening

Lionsgate says “Michael” will earn $90 million-$100 million in its first week, including $12 million from pre-weekend screenings.
Opening-day Friday generated about $39.5 million.
Worldwide estimates put the opening weekend at $200 million, ranking the film among the Top 5 musical biopics and beating “Straight Outta Compton’s” $201 million total.
Critics have panned the movie, with Rolling Stone noting omission of Jackson’s sexual-abuse accusations and director Dan Reed warning it could mislead viewers about his behavior toward children.

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