Jaafar Jackson Just Made Box Office History With His First Major Film Role
Biopics have never really been the genre studios bet on for blockbuster numbers, since they tend to earn awards buzz rather than the kind of box office records reserved for superhero sequels and animated tentpoles. That made the rollout of this year’s Michael Jackson film feel like a risky bet from the start, especially with a first-time actor carrying the lead role. Nobody involved could have predicted just how thoroughly that bet would pay off.
‘Michael’ opened in theaters back in April, carrying a mix of anticipation and skepticism, with pre-release tracking suggesting a modest opening in the range of sixty-five to seventy million dollars domestically.
Instead, the film blew past expectations with a ninety-seven million dollar domestic debut and a combined worldwide opening north of two hundred million, setting a new benchmark for musical biopics in the process. That momentum barely slowed down over the following months.
As of this week, ‘Michael’ has officially crossed one billion dollars in global ticket sales, becoming the first biopic in history to reach that milestone. The achievement puts Jaafar Jackson, who plays his real life uncle in his very first film role, at the center of a genuinely rare box office story, since the movie also marks his acting debut. Few actors ever get to say their first credited performance helped carry a film to nine figures, let alone ten.
The road to that milestone was not entirely smooth. Reshoots reportedly costing as much as fifty million dollars were required after the Jackson estate flagged a legal issue tied to a settlement clause barring the production from depicting one of Jackson’s accusers, which pushed the filmmakers to rework the film’s third act away from the abuse allegations that shadowed the final years of his life and toward his preparation for the 1987 Bad tour instead.
That shift drew a mixed critical response, with reviews frequently praising Jaafar Jackson’s performance while questioning the film’s decision to soften its subject’s more complicated legacy.
None of that friction seems to have slowed ticket sales. ‘Michael’ has already dethroned ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ as the highest-grossing music biopic ever made and surpassed Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’ to become the highest-grossing biographical film of any kind. It has also become the biggest release in Lionsgate’s history, easily outpacing the studio’s previous high-water mark set by ‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’ back in 2013.
Director Antoine Fuqua called the achievement a deeply humbling moment, crediting the dedication of the film’s producers, cast, and crew for helping the project reach such an extraordinary scale, speaking in a statement provided to Variety. Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson echoed that sentiment, pointing to the partnership between the studio, producer Graham King, and a cast led by Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo, and Nia Long as central to the film’s success.
Universal Pictures International president Veronika Kwan Vandenberg similarly framed the milestone as proof that Michael Jackson remains a global cultural force decades after his commercial peak, noting how the film resonated with audiences across international markets throughout its rollout.
That international performance has been a major part of the story, with the film earning close to six hundred thirty million dollars overseas against roughly three hundred seventy million domestically, a split that shows just how far the film’s appeal traveled beyond North America.
What surprised you most about Michael becoming a $1 billion hit?
With ‘Michael’ now standing as one of the defining box office stories of the year, only the animated hit ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ has managed to reach the billion-dollar mark ahead of it in 2026, putting Jaafar Jackson’s debut performance in genuinely rare company. Lionsgate has already signaled interest in developing at least one more film centered on Jackson’s life, suggesting this milestone may end up being the beginning of a larger franchise rather than a standalone achievement.
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