Michael Jackson’s ‘Michael’ Breaks Another Record as It Joins the Billion-Dollar Club
Music biopics have had a strange relationship with the box office over the years. A handful have broken out into genuine cultural moments, but the genre has always lived in the shadow of superhero movies and franchise sequels when it comes to sheer earning power.
That perception has been steadily crumbling since April, when Antoine Fuqua’s Michael Jackson film hit theaters carrying a hefty price tag and a wave of skeptical reviews. Despite the rocky start, the film kept selling tickets week after week, quietly climbing toward a number that no biopic had ever touched before.
Now, in its twelfth weekend of release, ‘Michael’ has officially crossed the one billion dollar mark at the global box office, becoming the first biographical film in movie history to reach that milestone. The achievement pushes the story of the King of Pop past both ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘Oppenheimer’ to claim the title of highest-grossing biopic ever made.
The international side of the ledger did most of the heavy lifting this time around. ‘Michael’ has now earned an estimated 629.8 million dollars overseas across more than 85 markets, with Japan and Russia providing enough momentum to offset softer numbers in territories distracted by the World Cup or already seeing the film through digital release.
Combined with a domestic haul of 371.8 million dollars in the United States, the film’s worldwide cume has landed just past the billion-dollar threshold. That result is especially notable given the movie’s roughly 200 million dollar production budget before marketing, a price tag that made it one of the most expensive music biopics ever put into production.
Director Antoine Fuqua marked the achievement in a statement, calling it a deeply humbling moment that celebrates the tireless dedication of the film’s producers, cast, crew, and partners, according to Deadline. He added that the milestone belongs to everyone who came together with a shared vision to honor one of the greatest artists the world has ever known.
With that record now secured, ‘Michael’ has set its sights on an even bigger prize. ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie,’ which has grossed just over 1.01 billion dollars worldwide, currently holds the title of highest-grossing film of the year globally, and industry watchers are now eyeing whether the Jackson biopic can close that gap.
Current projections suggest ‘Michael’ could ultimately land somewhere between 1.02 and 1.05 billion dollars by the end of its theatrical run, a range that would put it within striking distance of, or possibly past, the animated blockbuster for the year’s biggest global title.
Do you think Michael can become the highest-grossing movie of the year?
That kind of finish once seemed unthinkable for a film that opened under a cloud of behind-the-scenes turmoil and mixed critical reception. Yet audiences clearly saw something different, turning out in force across generations and continents to make ‘Michael’ one of the defining box office stories of the year.
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