Michael

"Discover the making of a king."

2026 2h 8m EN

🤯

8.6

MASTERPIECE

🥫

38%

ROTTEN

😬

METACRITIC

⭐

7.5

IMDB

★8.6TMDB · 4,500🥫38%Rotten Tomatoes●39Metacritic★7.5IMDB · 144,205

MusicDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The story of Michael Jackson, one of the most influential artists the world has ever known, and his life beyond the music. His journey from the discovery of his extraordinary talent as the lead of the Jackson Five, to the visionary artist whose creative ambition fueled a relentless pursuit to become the biggest entertainer in the world, highlighting both his life off-stage and some of the most iconic performances from his early solo career.

“Discover the making of a king.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

PhiloSubscription

Starz Amazon ChannelSubscription

StarzSubscription

Starz Apple TV channelSubscription

Starz Roku Premium ChannelSubscription

Cast

Jaafar Jackson
Michael
Colman Domingo
Joseph Jackson
Nia Long
Katherine Jackson
Juliano Krue Valdi
Young Michael
KeiLyn Durrel Jones
Bill Bray
Miles Teller
John Branca
Larenz Tate
Berry Gordy
Laura Harrier
Suzanne de Passe

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Antoine Fuqua
Writers: John Logan
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Budget of $250M — blockbuster tier. Only ~1% of films ever made reach this.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 4.2× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released this year — you're seeing it while it's still in the cultural conversation.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Michael Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Antoine Fuqua, shot by Dion Beebe. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Lior Rosner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor John Ottman shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Jaafar Jackson and Colman Domingo and Nia Long carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Antoine Fuqua directs. Dion Beebe behind the camera. Lior Rosner scores. John Ottman cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Budget of $250M — blockbuster tier. Only ~1% of films ever made reach this.
2Made its money back 4.2× over at the box office.
3Released this year — you're seeing it while it's still in the cultural conversation.
4Part of the "Michael Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
5Directed by Antoine Fuqua, shot by Dion Beebe. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Lior Rosner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor John Ottman shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Jaafar Jackson and Colman Domingo and Nia Long carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Discover the making of a king.".
10IMDB entry: tt11378946 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 20 themes, including "child abuse", "sibling relationship", "1970s", "abusive father".
12Released under 15 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Dion Beebe
Original score: Lior Rosner
Editing: John Ottman
Production design: Barbara Ling
Costume design: Marci Rodgers
Makeup / hair: Carla Farmer
VFX supervisor: Louis Morin
Sound: Paul Massey
Stunt coordinator: Chris O'Hara
Runtime: 128 min · 2h 8m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $250,000,000
Box office: $1,042,616,139
Return: 417% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Michael (2026)
Rotten Tomatoes: 38% 🥫 Rotten
Metacritic: 39/100
IMDB rating: 7.5/10 · 144,205 votes
MPAA: PG-13

Awards

7 wins & 5 nominations total

Part of

Michael Collection

A series of loose biographical dramas about pop icon Michael Jackson.

Also by

Antoine Fuqua

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2026-04-23
★ 7/10
Given the whole slew of Jackson's involved in this stylish production, I couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed by the hollowness of the whole thing. Certainly Jaafar Jackson has something of his uncle's charm and childlike vulnerability, but were we not to have known he was a member of the actual family then I'm not sure I'd have been that convinced by his acting characterisation away from the dance floor. In any case, we begin with his ten year old (or is that eight?) younger years; with the domestic brutality at the hands of their domineering father Joe (Colman Domingo) whilst powerless mother Katherine (Nia Long) looked on - but without ever really getting to appreciate the nature of the bond between the siblings (and there's no sign of Janet). Despite being a couple of hours long, by the time we get to the adult, snakes and llamas, phase of his life we seem to be hurrying things along without really learning of his relationship with Berry Gordy (Larenz Tate) or Quincy Jones (Kendrick Simpson) or agent/manager/pillar of support John Branca (Miles Teller). There can be no doubting that this Jackson is in his element in the studio and on the stage; his performances border on the mimicry - but with a freshness to them that reminds us that this lad has a little bit of je ne sais quoi all of his own, something he adds charismatically throughout. The film looks every bit as glitzy and innovative as the original performances were but without any depth. Indeed, it comes across more as a sort of highly-polished fanzine that takes us to "Bad" with the promise of more to come, but without us really knowing a great deal more about him than we could have read on Wikipedia. There is something maniacal about Domingo's effort that convinces, but otherwise perhaps those making this were too close to the subject matter to be truly objective about what made the man tick, and so I left the cinema having remembered a man I saw at Wembley in 1988 fondly, but not especially enlightened.
Fernsjjf902026-04-27
★ 10/10
I super duper enjoyed the movie. It really brought back the Michael Jackson back from the grave. The fans of the whole wide world loved it. Antoine Fuqua did an excellent job not bringing the controversial of Michael Jackson. Just focusing uprising to the fame. I don't care what the critics say. Go and watch the movie yourself. Jaafar Jackson & Colman Domingo did excellent in the movie. my rating for the movie 9.5/10. You won't regret it from watching it all over again. Especially on IMAX format.
utsavlovesfilms2026-05-08
★ 10/10
A FABULOUS CINEMATIC EXPERIENCE No matter how many times you watch it, the movie gets even better if you're a Michael Jackson fan. It offers a fast-paced look at the early life of the King of Pop without making it rushed. Basically tells how he became the King of Pop and what it took him to become that famous globally, including the abuse by his father and struggles with his lost childhood and appearance. Despite enjoying Bohemian Rhapsody more in terms of its length and structure, Michael still offers a fresh look at his life, though a Bohemian Rhapsody structure would've made it even better, and most importantly, the runtime. The film is only like 127 minutes while BoRhap clocked at 134 minutes, that was quite concerning because the film is not even 2 hours flat excluding the end credits, somehow that still felt better to me and that people with low attention span can enjoy it in theaters easily, especially the newer Tik-Tok generation. Story: 8.2/10 (Well-written with humoristic content as well) Pacing: 7.1/10 (Fast but not rushed, well done for newer gen citizens) Structure: 5.3/10 (Too linear and less attractive at times) Acting: 8/10 (Well-done, Colman, Juliano, Jaafar, Nia, and Miles nailed it) Accuracy: 9.1/10 (Better timeline than Bohemian Rhapsody) Exploration: 4.8/10 (Explores like a Wikipedia page and doesn't adds anything unique or unheard about Michael's life) Drama: 8.9/10 (Well-done and executed perfectly) Soundtrack: 7.3/10 (More of a greatest hits one by one but perfect picks) CGI: 6.5/10 (Can feel distracting, especially with Bubbles, but doesn't ruins the experience) Dancing: 9.8/10 (Literally a masterpiece, no flaws) Cinematography: 7.5/10 (Feels crispy, though sometimes like specifically shot for newer gen) Ending: 8.8/10 (Gives enough time to let audience prepare for Part Two, and ends on a high note) Overall: 7.6/10 (⭐⭐⭐⭐)