Antoine Fuqua’s sanitised Michael Jackson biopic summoned the fans and duly delivered over the weekend, as Lionsgate opened the film to an estimated $97m in North America, way ahead of the competition in a record-breaking debut.
Michael screened in 3,955 cinemas across the US and Canada and outstripped weekend estimates by around $30m to deliver the biggest unadjusted opening weekend of all time for a biopic.
The tentpole beat previous record-holder Oppenheimer on $82.5m via Universal in 2023, Universal’s Straight Outta Compton on $60.2m in 2015, and Michael producer Graham King’s Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody on $51.1m through 20th Century Fox in 2018.
The opening weekend was also Lionsgate’s top bow since the pandemic and 2015’s The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, which arrived on $102.7m. Michael delivered the studio’s sixth-biggest debut ever behind the first four Hunger Games films and Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part II, which means it is the studio’s biggest-ever launch for a non-adaptation. This continues a hot streak for Lionsgate after its recent $400m global smash The Housemaid.
The tentpole also scored the biggest opening weekend of 2026 so far for an original, non-franchise, non-superhero feature. Universal handles international distribution on Michael and reported a $120.4m weekend on Sunday, resulting in a $217.4m global bow. Screen will report territory grosses on Monday.
Driven by strong word of mouth, audiences were not bothered by generally poor reviews. The approximately $200m production had the blessing of the Michael Jackson estate and underwent eleventh-hour reshoots to cut out any mention of child abuse allegations. The estate paid for the reshoots. It is understood the filmmakers have plenty of footage and that the studio could greenlight a second feature.
PostTrak reported a 61% female crowd and a 66% audience aged 25 and above. Jackson’s nephew Jaafar Jackson plays Michael Jackson, and the cast includes Colman Domingo as Jackson’s father Joseph and Nia Long as the superstar’s mother Katherine. Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009.
The combined total three-day weekend of all releases came to an estimated $152.5m, up 2% against the comparable session a year ago. That propelled year-to-date box office to $2.57bn and an estimated 14.3% ahead of 2025 by the same stage.
Michael O’Leary, president and CEO of Cinema United, said: “Building on the momentum of global hits like Project Hail Mary and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, this weekend, Michael is proving yet again that audiences show up for compelling stories on the big screen.”:
Universal/Nintendo/Illumination’s The Super Mario Galaxy Movie ranked second on $21.2m for an estimated $386.5m running total after four weekends.
Rounding out the top five were Amazon MGM Studio’s Project Hail Mary on $13.2m for $305.4m after six; Lee Cronin’s The Mummy on$5.6m for $23.5m after a 58% drop in the second weekend for Warner Bros; and A24’s The Drama in fifth place on $2.6m for $44.8m after four.
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