Just recently "Michael" surpassed "Bohemian Rhapsody" about Freddie Mercury and Queen as the most successful musical biography in film history. Now the cinematic portrait of Michael Jackson (1958-2009) has achieved a special milestone. According to the industry magazine "Variety", "Michael" is now the first biopic ever to gross over one billion US dollars at the global box office.
Since its theatrical release at the end of April this year, "Michael" has generated 1.1 billion US dollars according to "Variety". Approximately 371 million came from the domestic US market. The rest of the world contributed around 630 million dollars.
Michael Jackson overtakes Robert Oppenheimer
The previous record for a film about a historical figure was held by "Oppenheimer". Christopher Nolan's (55) portrait of the "father of the atomic bomb" Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967) only came close to the billion mark in 2023. The Oscar winner grossed 975 million US dollars globally three years ago.
"Michael" is only the second film this year to achieve ten-figure dollar revenue. In 2026, only "Super Mario Galaxy Film" has accomplished this feat. The video game adaptation, which also launched in April, has grossed 1.8 billion dollars so far.
"Toy Story 5" could soon be the third member of this exclusive club. The animated film has already generated 875 million dollars, even though it hasn't launched in all countries yet. It opens in Germany on July 23.
"Michael" had to overcome the burden of poor reviews. A particular source of controversy beforehand was the fact that the film omitted the abuse allegations surrounding the King of Pop.
But right from the start, the biopic, in which Jaafar Jackson portrays his famous uncle, set a record. With 97 million dollars, it pulverized the opening record for a musician portrait in the USA. That record had been set in 2015 by "Straight Outta Compton" about the hip-hop group NWA (60 million).
