Jaafar Jackson’s ‘Michael’ closes its theatrical run with $1.028 billion: the first biopic in history to cross the billion mark

The biopic “Michael,” starring Jaafar Jackson as the King of Pop, has officially closed its theatrical run with $1,028,706,645 worldwide, as AllHipHop reports, citing Box Office Mojo data. It is the first time in history that a biographical film has crossed the one-billion-dollar threshold, making it the highest-grossing biopic of all time.

Director Antoine Fuqua’s film earned $372.3 million in the United States and Canada, while the rest — $656.4 million — came from international markets. So nearly two-thirds of the revenue was generated outside North America, a fitting result for a film that tells the life of an artist whose music conquered the planet. The film was distributed by Lionsgate in the U.S. and by Universal in most international markets.

Jaafar Jackson, Michael Jackson’s nephew, portrays his uncle from his early years with The Jackson 5 to his rise as one of the greatest entertainers in music history. The cast also includes Colman Domingo as Joseph Jackson and Nia Long as Katherine Jackson, and the film was produced in collaboration with the Michael Jackson estate. “Michael” opened in cinemas in April, with a $97.2 million opening weekend in the U.S. and over $217 million worldwide.

The road to the record was long: the film had already surpassed “Bohemian Rhapsody” to become the most successful music biopic, before also overtaking Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” for the title of the highest-grossing biopic overall. Guinness World Records also recognizes it as the most profitable music biopic in history. With this result, “Michael” joined the elite of 2026 films that crossed one billion dollars — alongside “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” with around $2.5 billion, “The Odyssey” with around $1.75 billion, “Toy Story 5” and “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.”