The Michael Jackson biopic Michael is projected to earn more than $85 million in its opening weekend at the domestic box office.
Michael, which stars Jaafar Jackson (Michael Jackson’s nephew/Jermaine Jackson’s son) in the title role, officially opened in North American theaters on Friday after special Wednesday night fan screenings and Thursday previews.
Directed by Antoine Fuqua, Michael covers the King of Pop’s life from his time as a 10-year-old singer (Juliano Valde) with his brothers in The Jackson 5 through his adult career as a solo artist, releasing the multiplatinum albums Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad.
The film wraps up in 1988, and the title card after the closing scene reads, “His Story Continues” — which is essentially a declaration to fans that there is more of Jackson’s story to be told in a possible sequel.
Of course, Michael, which cost $200 million to produce (via Variety) before marketing costs, has to become a blockbuster hit first for the film’s studio, Lionsgate, to produce a sequel. As such, if a projection for its opening weekend by Deadline published on Friday night is any indication, Michael is taking a big first step toward its aspirations to make a sequel a reality.
Michael, according to Deadline, is projected to earn anywhere between $85 million and $95 million in North American ticket sales through Sunday.
Even on the low end, the projected tally far exceeds the pre-release projections from Deadline and fellow industry trade publication Variety, which each forecast a $65 million to $70 million opening weekend. Should Deadline’s new projection hold, it falls in line with Box Office Pro’s forecast, which pegged an $85 million to $90 million opening.
Michael opened in 3,955 North American locations on Friday, including 1,700 IMAX and premium large format venues.
‘Michael’ Got A Jumpstart From Wednesday Fan Screenings And Thursday Previews
Lionsgate announced in an email Friday that Michael earned $3.8 million at fan screenings Wednesday night before playing in previews Thursday night, which resulted in a two-day domestic total of $12.6 million.
Folding in the early access tally, Deadline projects that Michael will earn anywhere from $35 million to $40 million on Friday.
Should Deadline’s weekend projection of anywhere from $85 million to $95 million hold up, it will easily take the box office crown away from Universal Pictures’ The Super Mario Galaxy Movie after it held the top slot for three consecutive weekends. The trade publication is estimating that The Super Mario Galaxy Movie will earn $20.5 million in its fourth weekend frame to bolster its running domestic take to $385.7 million.
Lionsgate also announced Friday that Michael also opened with $18.5 million in ticket sales in 82 international markets on Wednesday. The film, which is being distributed by Universal Pictures internationally, will also open in theaters in China on Friday.
Rated PG-13, Michael also stars Colman Domingo, Nia Long, Laura Harrier and Miles Teller.
Note: This box office report will be updated throughout the weekend with the most current numbers for “Michael” as they become available. The final figures for the weekend box office will be released on Monday.
