Lionsgate’s musical biopic “Michael,” chronicling the life of Michael Jackson from his origins in the Jackson 5 to his reign as the King of Pop, has shattered box office expectations, achieving a record-setting global opening weekend of over $200 million, including $97 million domestically and a worldwide total of $217 million. This makes it the biggest opening of all time for any musical biopic, easily surpassing 2015’s “Straight Outta Compton” and marking Lionsgate’s largest hit since 2015’s “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2.” The studio is reportedly considering greenlighting at least one more film about Jackson’s life, underscoring the undeniable power of his cultural reach.

Critics, including Variety’s Rebecca Rubin, drew parallels between “Michael” and 2018’s Freddie Mercury and Queen biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody,” which garnered over $900 million worldwide. Both films effectively leaned on recreating thrilling concert sequences, providing a fun and immersive experience for audiences in auditoriums with superior sound and visuals. This emphasis on iconic performances, such as “Billie Jean,” “Thriller,” and “Beat It,” proved to be a crowd-pleaser, with Imax alone contributing $13.8 million in North American ticket sales and $24.5 million globally, the biggest start for a musical biopic for the company.

Despite the film’s massive success, it wasn't without controversy. Many critics, as Rubin notes, took issue with “Michael’s” sanitized approach to Jackson’s life, as it concludes before the serious allegations of child sexual abuse that plagued him in his later years. While some felt this omitted a crucial part of his story, audiences largely embraced the film, awarding it an “A-” grade on CinemaScore exit polls. This indicates a strong desire among moviegoers for a crowd-pleasing narrative, suggesting many have separated the art from the artist, a debate that has long surrounded Jackson’s legacy. Initial plans for the screenplay to dramatize a 1993 child sexual abuse lawsuit were scrapped due to a settlement clause, a decision that, despite adding tens of millions to the budget, ultimately made the film accessible to a wider range of music fans across all demographics.

Directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Jackson’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, in his acting debut, “Michael” represents a significant turning point for Lionsgate. After a challenging period with box office failures, the studio has experienced an upswing, with “Michael” joining recent successes like September’s dystopian drama “The Long Walk,” “Now You See Me: Now You Don’t,” and psychological thriller “The Housemaid.” Lionsgate’s motion picture chairman, Adam Fogelson, attributes this commercial streak to the “joy of the communal experience,” emphasizing that films best enjoyed with a group significantly enhance the odds of success.

The strong performance of “Michael” is welcome news for exhibitors, signaling robust box office momentum into the spring season. Upcoming releases such as “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” “Mortal Kombat 2,” and “The Mandalorian and Grogu” are poised to continue attracting patrons. Meanwhile, in a separate entertainment note, Variety’s Marc Malkin reported on Madonna’s epic surprise appearance at The Abbey, a West Hollywood LGBTQ bar and nightclub, on a Saturday night, an occasion that doubled as a birthday celebration for the owner, Tristan Schukraft.