Michael has officially had the biggest, highest-grossing opening weekend of all time for a biopic, racking up $217 million USD as it moonwalked right to the top of box office charts.
Despite all of the controversies surrounding the film, as well as the child sexual abuse allegations against Michael Jackson, moviegoers flocked to cinemas to watch Michael’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, make his film debut starring as his uncle, the King of Pop.
The film, which follows the American singer’s life as him and his sibling’s forming the Jackson 5 in the ’60s, all the way through to the Bad tour in the late ’80s, grossed a huge $120.4 million USD from its international opening weekends across 82 countries. As for North America, it exceeded $97 million USD in ticket sales. It’s expected to gross over $700 million USD in ticket sales by the end of its run in cinemas.
Before it premiered, Michael was originally projected to make approximately $75 million USD domestically and $150 million USD globally, but surpassed those numbers with flying colours. The production team must’ve been doing some hardcore manifesting after spending an additional $21 million AUD to rewrite the third act of the film following requests from the Jackson estate to remove any mention of Jordan Chandler’s 1993 sexual abuse allegations against Jackson.
To put how massively Michael‘s opening weekend was into perspective, Oppenheimer‘s opening weekend grossed $174 million USD back in 2023. So, if ticket sales surpass experts’ expectations, just like they did for the opening weekend, there’s a chance it could surpass Oppenheimer and become the highest-grossing biopic of all time. And if it can’t beat the 2023 film’s earnings just shy of $976 million USD, Michael is still set to sit amongst the highest-grossing biopics of all time.
It’s Lionsgate’s biggest opening weekend since the pandemic, as well as its biggest launch for a non-adaptation. Michael now sits as the film production company’s sixth-biggest debut behind the original four Hunger Games movies and Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part II.
Defying the critics
Michael‘s strong opening weekend is a complete contradiction to the onslaught of poor reviews it received from critics. It’s currently sitting at 38 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics calling it a “a cash grab intermittently relieved by magic” and saying that “spectacle sells better than honesty”.
Despite receiving plenty of harsh reviews, fans didn’t let that stop them from going and deciding for themselves. And the verdict? The people love it, with a heavily contrasting 97 per cent on the Rotten tomatoes Popcornometer. One audience review expressed that they “could not find a single flaw in this movie”, while another said both “young Michael and old Michael were phenomenal”.
Rumours of a sequel
Off the back of the entire original third act of Michael ending up on the cutting-room floor, fans are wondering if there will be a sequel biopic.
After the end credits, there was a closing message — “his story continues” — opening up a doorway for a second film to be made. Critics weren’t impressed that the film ended in 1988, so perhaps director Antoine Fuqua has plans to turn Jackson’s story into a two-parter?
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Lionsgate film chair Adam Fogelson said that a sequel won’t just be dependent on box office numbers, but if fans cry out for more.
“We have prepared for that moment. And if the audience reinforces that they’re ready for more, we’re prepared to give it to them sooner rather than later,” he said.
Whether or not the filmmakers will be able to work around the clause that states Jackson’s child sexual abuse accuser Jordan Chandler can never have his name and likeness depicted in a film remains to be seen. If a sequel does materialise, the filmmakers will face the Herculean task, that’s for sure.
Image credit: YouTube / Lionsgate
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