‘Michael' Is Officially the Highest-Grossing Musical Biopic Ever

It was Michael Jackson versus Freddie Mercury in the battle of the box office today. Michael has surpassed Bohemian Rhapsody as the highest-grossing musical biopic of all time.

Now Michael is on track to break more records. The current highest-grossing biopic is Christopher Nolan'sOppenheimer, which ended its run at $975.8 million worldwide. As of June 12, Michael has made nearly $912 million according to Deadline, and the number is still climbing.

The film is directed by Antoine Fuqua and stars Jaafar Jackson, Michael Jackson's nephew. Graham King serves as a producer for Michael; notably, King produced Bohemian Rhapsody, which means he has broken his own record today.

Fuqua is best known for the Equalizer franchise, Training Day, and other action movies. He is a frequent collaborator with award-winning actor Denzel Washington. Michael is one of Jaafar Jackson's only film credits, but his performance of his uncle has been critically acclaimed. Most of the Jackson family has also approved of his casting.

There were challenges in making Michael, mainly Jackson's real-life controversies. Fuqua filmed a scene in which the FBI invaded Neverland Ranch because the initial third act was intended to explore Michael Jackson's later years, but it was cut due to legal issues.

All allegations of child molestation were removed from the script because Jackson Estate attorneys discovered a clause in the singer's settlement with Jordan Chandler, one of his accusers. Michael Jackson settled the case with Chandler for $23 million dollars in 1994. The clause prevented any depiction of him from being in any movie.

Jackson was also taken to court in 2005 for alleged abuse but was acquitted on all 10 counts. In 2019, the documentaryLeaving Neverland was about two more people who accused the singer of abuse, bringing the official number of accusers up to four.

The documentary sparked widespread debate, but the Jackson Estate called it "character assassination" and successfully sued HBO over its release. Ultimately, the documentary gave Jackson a boost in streaming, according to Billboard, and many fans did not believe the accusations were genuine, including Fuqua.

Michael was released in Japan on June 12, which will continue to boost the box office numbers. If Michael can break Oppenheimer's record, then it will be only $25 million away from becoming the first biopic to break $1 billion. This would be the second film this year to achieve that mark, along with Super Mario Galaxy Movie.

In the United States, Michael has some hurdles to get past. The film was also released for streaming on Amazon Prime and the Apple TV Store on June 9, and having it available online may dissuade some audiences from seeing the biopic in theaters.

This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Jun 12, 2026, where it first appeared in the Entertainment section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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This story was originally published June 12, 2026 at 4:22 PM.