There’s a new box office king.
“Michael,” a biopic about the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, arrived in theaters as an instant sensation with $97 million domestically and $217 million globally in its first weekend of release. These ticket sales rank as the best start of all time for a biopic, smashing the record set by 2015’s “Straight Outta Compton” ($60 million). And they tower above 2018’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” which opened to $51 million before obliterating expectations with $910 million worldwide by the end of its run. “Michael” also notched the second-biggest debut of the year behind April’s sequel “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” ($131 million).
“Michael” landed on tracking a month ago with estimates of $50 million to $60 million, but expectations continued to rise and rise in the lead up to its release. The movie is rocking the box office despite the mostly terrible reviews (only 38% of which were positive on Rotten Tomatoes). Audiences, however, strongly disagreed with the majority of critics and embraced “Michael” with an “A-” grade on CinemaScore exit polls.
Antoine Fuqua directed “Michael,” which charts the singer’s early days in the Jackson 5 to becoming one of the biggest entertainers on the planet. Jaafar Jackson, the singer’s real-life nephew, portrays Michael Jackson in his acting debut, with Colman Domingo and Nia Long as parents, Joe and Katherine. Film reviewers have complained that “Michael” takes a sanitized look at Jackson’s life because it doesn’t include the child sexual abuse allegations that were leveled against the singer later in his career.
That wasn’t always the plan for “Michael.” Initially, the screenplay had dramatized a 1993 child molestation lawsuit against Jackson. But those sequences had to be removed after producers discovered a clause in the settlement with the young accuser that barred the depiction or mention of him in film or television. After a major overhaul of the third act, the film ends during the Bad tour in 1988. Lionsgate is expected to greenlight (at least) one more film about Jackson’s life.
“Michael” carries a price tag near $200 million, making it one of the most expensive biopics of all time. Those costs were split by Lionsgate, Universal (which is distributing the film internationally) and the Michael Jackson estate. Despite the behind-the-scenes headaches, the movie is already proving to be worth the hefty price tag.
“Michael” is the biggest hit for Lionsgate in more than a decade, since 2015’s “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2” ($102 million debut). If ticket sales surpass $700 million worldwide, as expected, “Michael” will land among the studio’s biggest films of all time, with the top three spots belonging to 2013’s “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” ($865 million globally), 2012’s “Twilight: Breaking Dawn – Part 2” ($848 million) and 2014’s “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1” ($759 million). After a brutal rough patch in 2024, with a string of flops including “Borderlands,” a reboot of “The Crow” and “Wonder” prequel “White Bird,” Lionsgate’s box office fortunes have been on the upswing. Recent wins include “Now You See Me, Now You Don’t,” “The Housemaid” and “The Long Walk.”
There’s been no shortage of music biopics, especially since the pandemic. Amy Winehouse (“Back to Black”), Bob Dylan (“A Complete Unknown”), Bob Marley (“One Love”), Bruce Springsteen (“Deliver Me From Nowhere”) and Elvis Presley (“Elvis”) are among the stars whose stories have been immortalized on screen to varying degrees of box office success. Like “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “Elvis” before it, “Michael” scored with audiences by leaning heavily on recreating thrilling concert sequences. Those electrifying scenes — musical numbers in “Michael” include “Billie Jean,” “Thriller” and “Beat It” — made the film a draw in Imax and other premium large formats. Imax accounted for $13.8 million, or roughly 14% of North American ticket sales, and $24.5 million globally, ranking as the company’s biggest start for a musical biopic.
As this weekend’s only major release, “Michael” towered over North American charts. Reigning champ “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” slid to second place after three weekends in the No. 1 spot. Universal’s animated sequel about the beloved Nintendo characters has added $21.2 million from 3,732 theaters, boosting revenues to $384 million domestically and more than $800 million globally.
“Project Hail Mary” was No. 3 with $13.2 million from 3,510 locations, a remarkable tally for a film in its sixth weekend of release. So far, the space epic, starring Ryan Gosling, has generated a mighty $305 million in North America and roughly $600 million worldwide.
More to come…
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