Pop legend Michael Jackson’s biopic Michael has moonwalked its way to a sensational global box office debut, delivering strong numbers across markets, including India. The film exceeded industry expectations to post a record-setting $217 million worldwide opening weekend — the highest ever for a biopic.
In India, Michael netted a solid ₹16 crore over the weekend, as reported by Sacnilk. The film began its box office journey with select paid previews on Thursday, collecting around ₹1 crore, followed by ₹3.70 crore on Friday. It then added over ₹5 crore each on Saturday and Sunday.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Michael earned a strong $97 million in its domestic opening weekend in the US — nearly $30 million ahead of expectations — and added another $120.4 million from international markets, taking its global opening to $217.4 million.
The collections make Michael the biggest domestic opener of all time for a biopic, surpassing filmmaker Christopher Nolan's Academy Award-winning Oppenheimer, which had registered an $80 million opening weekend in 2023.
Globally, the film also outpaced Bohemian Rhapsody ($141 million) and Oppenheimer ($180.4 million) to emerge as the biggest opening ever for the genre.
Among 2026 releases, Michael has recorded the second-biggest global opening so far. It is ahead of Project Hail Mary, the Ryan Gosling-led sci-fi feature, which grossed $141 million worldwide. The top spot is currently held by The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which opened to $131.7 million in the US and $372.5 million globally in its first weekend.
The film is set for a relatively clear run this week, with holdover competition from The Super Mario Galaxy Movie and Project Hail Mary, before facing a major Hollywood release in The Devil Wears Prada 2.
Directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by John Logan, Michael traces Jackson’s life from his early days with the Jackson 5 in the 1960s to the Bad tour in the late 1980s. The late pop icon is portrayed by his nephew, Jaafar Jackson.