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Musical biopics are a tried and true genre in the film world, and are capable of becoming Awards Season favorites. Just look at the Oscar-winning success of Bohemian Rhapsody. There’s a new one with Antoine Fuqua‘s Michael, which just got its wide theatrical release. And while the critical response to Michael wasn’t great, audiences are having a very different take on the King of Pop’s story. Let’s break it all down.
What we know about Michael has been fairly limited ahead of its release, but fans were invested in seeing Jackson’s story told on the big screen. The trailer for Michael showed the singer’s real-life nephew Jaafar Jackson play him throughout the years, and now moviegoers can see it all play out on the big screen. And while the movie has a dismal 40% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, there’s a big discrepancy with audiences. Because it’s sitting at an impressive 96%, meaning it’s “verified hot” on the review aggregator.
This is just the latest example of critics and audiences disagreeing on Rotten Tomatoes, so it should be fascinating to see how Michael ultimately performs at the box office. Given Jackson’s global impact, the title was one of the most highly anticipated upcoming musical biopics in the business. So the movie could very well end up being a wild success despite movie reviews largely coming down hard on it.
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While Michael Jackson might have died back in 2009, that hasn’t stopped generations of music fans from enjoying his catalogue and continuing his legacy. And it looks like Antoine Fuqua’s new movie has the potential to please that massive fandom, as it covers his life from 1966 to 1988. And that includes plenty of his beloved songs, such as “Thriller” and “Beat It.”
Some of the criticism surrounding Michael is how the movie skirts around some of the controversies that have surrounding the late singer. One of his other nephews Taj Jackson encouraged folks to see the movie, and allow it to color how they see the King of Pop. Now that the biopic is officially in theaters, only time will tell how this helps to change the public’s perception of Jackson. So, given both his death and the controversies, there is an added emotional weight to the film’s release on the big screen.
Michael has had a rocky road to theaters, between recasting and issues with Jackson’s family. But if it ends up being a box office smash that might all be worth it. The stakes are high, and smart money says folks are going to be paying attention.
Michael is in theaters now as part of the 2026 movie release list. We’ll have to see how much money it makes, and if it ends up defying critics and becoming an Awards Season favorite.