Michael continues to soar at the box office as audiences flock to theaters. The King of Pop’s biopic is a financial success, and it appears Hollywood will continue making these biopics despite their divisive nature.
This past weekend, Michael managed to do the unthinkable — it topped the domestic and worldwide box office in its fourth weekend. Michael grossed $26.1 million domestically and $83.8 million worldwide, beating out The Devil Wears Prada 2 ($18 million) and Obsession ($16.1 million).
Michael has now soared past $700 million worldwide, making it the second-highest-grossing music biopic of all time. The Michael Jackson movie now has a legitimate chance to surpass Bohemian Rhapsody‘s $910 million for the record.
Why Michael’s success will lead to more music biopics even if they’re critical misses
Michael became a financial juggernaut while receiving mixed reviews from critics. Despite having a 97% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, Michael has a disappointing 39% on the Tomatometer.
Michael’s success shows that critical acclaim does not determine financial success in biopics if the music is good and the performances are entertaining. Look at Bohemian Rhapsody. The Queen biopic received mixed reviews, but the musical performances and star Rami Malek garnered positive acclaim. The film went on to win four Oscars, including Best Actor for Malek.
Audiences aren’t looking for deep character explorations when watching these biopics. They want to have a good time at the movies and listen to their favorite songs. These are called jukebox musicals.
It’s partially why Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere flopped. Instead of being a film that recreated many of Bruce Springsteen’s best performances, it focused on the singer’s emotional state and the making of one of his quieter albums.
Hollywood is a copycat town. The industry will double and triple down on ideas that work. Michael’s success will inevitably lead to more biopics that are crowd-pleasing spectacles instead of critical hits, so expect other artists and their estates to explore jukebox musical opportunities in the future. Biopics about Madonna, Britney Spears, and Prince have already been floated, with the Madonna film even casting Julia Garner before its eventual cancellation.
As long as these movies have the artist’s hit songs and a charismatic star at the center, you better believe more biopics are coming.
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