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The reviews are in for the highly anticipated Michael Jackson biopic, Michael - and critics have panned the project.
Taking on the role of the King of Pop is his nephew Jaafar Jackson, the son of Michael's older brother Jermaine Jackson, who was cast in the role back in January 2023.
The cast also includes Nia Long as Katherine Jackson, Coleman Domingo as Joe Jackson, and Miles Teller as attorney John Branca. Kat Graham also stars as Diana Ross, with Laura Harrier as Suzanne de Passe, Kendrick Sampson as Quincy Jones, and Juliano Krue Valdi as a young Michael.
Antoine Fuqua is the film's director, and the script is by John Logan, while Graham King, John Branca and John McClain are producers of the film.
“The film tells the story of Michael Jackson’s life beyond the music, tracing 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," the synopsis reads.
"Highlighting both his life off-stage and some of the most iconic performances from his early solo career, the film gives audiences a front-row seat to Michael Jackson as never before. This is where his story begins.”
It's fair to say there has already been much hype around the film, as the trailer became the most-viewed trailer for any music biopic in history, getting 116.2 million globally in 24 hours.
What are critics saying?
The film has received mixed to unfavourable reviews and at the time of writing. Michael currently has a 35 per cent critics score on film and TV review aggregate website, Rotten Tomatoes. Many praised Jaafar Jackson's performance as Michael, with the main criticism revolving around the film's contents, most notably his abusive childhood and the fact that it ends in 1988 before the singer's child sexual abuse allegations surfc
The Independent's Clarisse Loughrey gave the film one star, calling it a "ghoulish, soulless cash grab."
"All Michael does is recreate, in mechanical style, the most famous visuals of Jackson’s career. It’s certainly easier that way. Why bother to depict a human being when you can simply turn them into a product?"
"It's bad. It's bad. It's really, really bad," said BBC Culture's Nicolas Barber. "The new Michael Jackson biopic, Michael, is produced by several of his relatives and close associates, so no one expected it to be a searing portrait of the controversial star. But it's still surprising that they've made such a bland and barely competent daytime TV movie."
In his two-star review, The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw described it as "bland, bowdlerised … and bad."
"...This is a frustratingly shallow, inert picture, a kind of cruise-ship entertainment, which can’t quite bring itself to show that Michael was an abuse victim, brutalised by his father and robbed of his childhood."
"Hugely impressive musical and dance performances from the two young men playing Michael Jackson cannot shake off the uncomfortable fact that there is an entire other side to the pop star’s story, which is entirely conspicuous by its absence here," Empire's John Nugent said in his two-star review.
There were also some more positive reviews that were complimentary of the film.
"If you’re even remotely nostalgic for the time when his songs were ubiquitous on pop charts, at parties and on dance floors worldwide, the movie will be a warm rush of transporting pleasure," said The Hollywood Reporter''s David Rooney.
USA Today's Melissa Ruggeri noted, "Jaafar may share his late uncle’s megawatt smile, lithe frame and Bambi eyelashes. But his liquid dance moves -- highlighted as he teaches gang members the footwork in the “Beat It” video -- and soft-spoken cadence are studied to perfection," rating it three out of four stars.
"From the casting to the costumes to the full-fledged concert performances, Michael lives up to the legendary status of its namesake," Screen Rant's Liz Declan gave the biopic nine out of 10 stars.
Will there be a second film?
There has been speculation on whether there will be a sequel to the Michael Jackson biopic.
Back in May, there were reports that the studio was considering this with the three-and-a-half hours of footage, but it is yet to be confirmed, although Lionsgate execs hinted this potentially might happen in a second-quarter earnings call with analysts back in November.
"While we’re not yet ready to confirm plans for a second film, I can tell you that the creative team is hard at work making sure that we’re in a position to deliver more Michael soon after we release the first film,” Adam Fogelson, chair of the studio’s Motion Picture Group, told analysts, as per Hollywood Reporter.
Most recently, the film's producer Graham King said to ScreenRant on the possibility of a biopic, "No, I've definitely been thinking about some things. We'll see. We'll see what happens," and Jaafar Jackson also seemed keen to reprise the role when asked if he has more in him, he responded, "I absolutely do. Yeah."
When will the film be released?
Michael is set to be released in cinemas on April 24, 2026.
Elsewhere from Indy100, Everything we know about the new Michael Jackson biopic 'Michael', and Baby loses it every time he hears 1970s hit and it's simply adorable.
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