In defiance of all the naysaying critics, the Michael Jackson biopic Michael has just topped Oppenheimer to become the highest-grossing biopic of all time.
To prove what good people they are (fascism is usually covered in do-gooderism), critics tried to shame the public into shunning Michael because the movie doesn’t portray the late King of Pop as a child predator.
Never mind that the movie ends in 1988, five years before the first allegations arrived. Never mind that in both the 1993 and 2003 cases, the mighty and powerful State of California failed to make its case. No, no, no, no… We’re supposed to either be good people and not go to see Michael, or we’re required to feel guilty for seeing it, and feel especially awful if we — heaven forbid — enjoy Michael.
Thankfully, no one listens to these fascists anymore and Michael not only ended up becoming a summer sensation at the movies — it has entered the record books.
As of Monday, Michael has grossed $370 million domestic and $607 million overseas, for a global total of $977 million.
Prior to Michael, the top-grossing musical biopic of all time was 2018’s Bohemian Rhapsody, which grossed $217 million domestic and $694 million overseas, for a global gross of $911 million.
Prior to Michael, the top-grossing biopic (of any genre) of all time was 2023’s Best Picture Oscar winner, Oppenheimer, which grossed $330 million domestic and $646 million overseas, for a global gross of $976 million.
At this point, with the movie still doing well overseas, Michael is on pace to cross the $1 billion mark.
You want to know why Michael is a hit? Simple: it delivered for the still-massive Michael Jackson fanbase. Unlike Star Wars and Supergirl and Joker and post-Avengers: Endgame Marvel, it didn’t seek to shame and alienate its most loyal fans. Instead, it embraced them by focusing on what people love about Michael Jackson — his breathtaking talent.
The best musical biopic of this century is still Get On Up, which looks at the amazing life (and music) of James Brown (Chadwick Boseman – who should’ve won the Oscar). Yet, Get On Up didn’t shy away from Brown’s many flaws, just as the popular musical biopics Walk the Line and Ray didn’t shy away from the flaws of Johnny Cash and Ray Charles. What those movies didn’t do, though, was define those legends by their flaws. They were defined by their genius. Fans appreciated this, and the result was hit movies.
Star Wars, Supergirl, Joker 2, and the like are stupidly determined to stick their finger in the eye of the fans, to make us feel like suckers for buying a ticket, to shame us for loving these franchises and characters by “correcting” them.
No one wants to watch that, and no one does.