Michael Jackson’s new biopic has just beaten Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer‘ to become the highest-grossing biographical film ever made. ‘Michael‘ has now earned $977.4 million worldwide and is poised to cross the $1 billion mark, a first for any biopic.
The film took the top spot after surpassing the $975 million record set by ‘Oppenheimer‘ just three years ago. Before that, ‘Michael‘ had already beaten ‘Bohemian Rhapsody‘ to become the biggest music biopic of all time. Right now, the only movie to hit a billion dollars in 2026 is Universal’s ‘Super Mario Galaxy Movie.’
Global Box Office Numbers and International Appeal of the King of Pop
Lionsgate handled the US release, and Universal took care of international markets. According to Box Office Mojo, the movie made $370.2 million at home and a huge $607.2 million overseas.
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Jackson’s global appeal is also clear from the numbers. It pulled in over $70 million in the United Kingdom, more than $55 million in France, and over $30 million each in Mexico, Brazil, and Australia.
Jaafar Jackson’s Performance Drives Audience Support Despite Mixed Critics
Antoine Fuqua directed the film, and Graham King, who also produced ‘Bohemian Rhapsody,’ was behind it. The story follows Jackson from his Jackson 5 days all the way through his rise to worldwide fame. A big part of the movie’s appeal is Jaafar Jackson, the singer’s real-life nephew, making his acting debut. People have really connected with how much he looks and sounds like his uncle. Colman Domingo and Nia Long also star as Joe and Katherine Jackson, the singer’s parents.
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What really pushed this film forward was strong word of mouth and people going back to see it multiple times. Critics were more mixed in their reviews. They pointed out that the movie gives a pretty cleaned-up version of Jackson’s life and leaves out the child abuse allegations that came up later on. But audiences did not seem to care about that. The film currently holds a 97% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
‘Michael’ Heads Toward Billion-Dollar Milestone as Japan Joins Theatrical Rollout
When ‘Michael‘ first came out, it opened to $217 million globally, which was a new record for a biopic’s opening weekend. It is also Lionsgate’s highest-grossing movie ever in theaters, even beating ‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.’ Adam Fogelson, who runs the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, talked about what this means. He said, “Michael Jackson’s music always belonged to the world, and this extraordinary milestone proves that his story still holds an unparalleled global power.”
Japan, which has always been a strong market for Jackson, just started showing the film too. That should help push it over the billion-dollar line very soon. ‘Michael‘ did not just break records; it showed that a biopic can reach heights that no one expected, and it proved that the King of Pop’s legacy still reaches people everywhere, no matter their age or where they live.
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