Michael Becomes Highest-Grossing Biopic Ever, Surpassing Bohemian Rhapsody

Michael Jackson’s biopic, Michael , has dethroned Bohemian Rhapsody to become the highest-grossing music biopic of all time, crossing $911.9 million worldwide as the Jaafar Jackson-starring film continues its global rollout.

Directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by John Logan, the Lionsgate and Universal co-production has surpassed Bohemian Rhapsody ‘s total gross with $358.6 million at the domestic box office and $553.3 million internationally — with Universal generating $540.5 million of the international total after acquiring foreign theatrical and ancillary rights. The film arrives in Japan today, a territory that could push Michael past $1 billion worldwide, which would make it only the second film to cross that threshold at the 2026 global box office after Universal’s Super Mario Galaxy Movie .

By comparison, the Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody — which won four Oscars including Best Film Editing and earned Rami Malek a Best Actor win — grossed $216.6 million domestically and $694.3 million internationally for a $910.9 million global total. Both films were produced by Graham King, meaning King has now broken his own all-time box office record for music biopics.

The film has set a string of records in addition to its overall gross — among them the largest global opening weekend ever for a music biopic, the highest-grossing domestic biopic of all time, and the most successful biopic ever in France, surpassing La Vie en Rose . Forty international markets surpassed Bohemian Rhapsody ‘s lifetime gross, including Brazil, France and Mexico. It is also Lionsgate’s highest-grossing theatrical release ever worldwide.

The road to release was not without turbulence. Lionsgate was forced to undertake $50 million in reshoots after the Jackson estate identified a key issue with a plot point in the screenplay concerning one of Jackson’s accusers, who was not meant to be dramatised in the film. The film stars Jaafar Jackson — Michael Jackson’s nephew — in the title role.

Michael Jackson remains one of the most commercially successful recording artists in history. He has sold an estimated 350 million records worldwide, scored 13 No. 1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 as a solo artist — including “Billie Jean,” “Beat It” and “Black or White” — and holds the record for the best-selling album of all time with Thriller , which has sold more than 70 million copies worldwide.

Thriller spent 37 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Jackson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice — once as a member of the Jackson 5 in 1997 and once as a solo artist in 2001.

_Originally reported by [Billboard](https://www.billboard.com/culture/tv-film/michael-jackson-highest-grossing-biopic-all-time-1236272605/)._