NEW YORK (AP) — "Michael," the big-budget Michael Jackson spectacle, shrugged off bad reviews and a troubled production to launch with $97 million in U.S. and Canada theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday, shattering a record debut for music biopics.
A highly authorized portrayal of the King of Pop, co-produced by the Jackson estate, Lionsgate’s “Michael” far surpassed previous biopic top performers like “Straight Outta Compton” (a $60.2 million debut in 2015) and “Bohemian Rhapsody” ($51 million in 2018).
International sales were also strong. “Michael” collected $120.4 million overseas, to give it a $217.4 million global opening — a new high for a music biopic. Universal picked up distribution in most international markets.
A few weeks back, estimates for “Michael” were closer to $50 million. Going into the weekend, the studio estimated closer to $70 million. But it wildly overperformed.
"From the beginning, all of the signals were that something like this was possible," said Adam Fogelson, Lionsgate chairman. “We were seeing massive engagement with every conceivable audience segment that you could identify.”
Even in the lucrative market of music biopics, “Michael” was an audacious bet by Lionsgate on an extraordinarily popular but controversial figure. The reputation of Jackson, who died in 2009 at the age of 50, has been repeatedly tarnished by allegations of sexual abuse of children. Jackson and his estate have maintained his innocence, though the pop star acknowledged sharing a bedroom with other people’s children. He was acquitted in his sole criminal trial in 2005.
Some Jackson family members opposed the film. Janet Jackson was uninvolved and doesn’t appear in it. Jackson’s daughter, Paris, called it “fantasy land.” But three years after “Leaving Neverland,” the 2009 documentary about Jackson’s alleged sexual abuse of children, “Bohemian Rhapsody” producer Graham King announced plans for the biopic. Jackson’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, was cast to star.
“Michael” had an unusually rocky production. After shooting was completed, producers realized they had made a costly mistake. The third act focused on the accusations of Jordan Chandler, then 13 years old, whom Jackson paid $23 million to in a 1994 settlement. The terms of that settlement barred the Jackson estate from ever mentioning Chandler in a movie.
A huge chunk of the film had to be cut. Reshoots for as much as $50 million were done at the estate’s expense. Director Antoine Fuqua and screenwriter John Logan reworked the movie to conclude in 1988, before any accusations were made.
“I would take issue with the idea that we as a studio or as filmmakers were running around in a panic," said Fogelson. “It was definitely a unique and challenging circumstance to figure out how to work through. But it created an opportunity to tell more story than any one film could possibly contain.”
Yet as bad as things once looked for “Michael,” the movie turned into a huge hit. The film’s total production cost came close to $200 million. To defray costs, Lionsgate sold international distribution rights to Universal. A sequel is in development. A third film after that, Fogelson said, is “not inconceivable.”
“The audience spoke loud and clear," Fogelson said. “The portion of Michael's life that this story tells couldn't have gotten into those allegations because the allegations themselves hadn't happened in the period this movie existed. I think the audience is judging it on those terms. We'll see what happens as we move into the possibility of subsequent films.”
Critics slammed the film for glossing over some of the less convenient aspects of Jackson’s life. It scored a paltry 38% on Rotten Tomatoes. But audiences were far more enthusiastic. “Michael” earned an “A-” CinemaScore.
“It’s only human nature to enjoy yourself at the movie theater,” said Paul Dergarabedian, head of marketplace trends for Comscore. “The movie was perfectly positioned ahead of the start of the summer movie season which launches later this week with the ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ that is also poised to outpace even the most generous opening weekend projections.”
The opening for “Michael” added to a strong spring for Hollywood boosted by box-office hits like Amazon MGM’s “Project Hail Mary” and Universal’s “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.” After three weeks atop the box office, the “Mario” sequel slid to second place, with $21.2 million. In four weeks, it’s collected $386.5 million domestically and $445 million internationally.
Meanwhile, “Project Hail Mary” surged past $600 million worldwide in its sixth weekend of release. The film's total haul for Amazon MGM stands at $305.3 million domestic and $613.3 million globally.
With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. “Michael,” $97 million.
2. “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie,” $21.2 million.
3. “Project Hail Mary,” $13.2 million.
4. “Lee Cronin's The Mummy,” $5.6 million.
5. “The Drama,” $2.6 million.
6. “Hoppers,” $1.9 million.
7. “You, Me & Tuscany,” $1.5 million.
8. “Over Your Dead Body,” $1.4 million.
9. “Mother Mary,” $1.2 million.
10. “American Youngboy,” $1.2 million.
Joseph David-Jones arrives at the premiere of "Michael" on Monday, April 20, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Iran 's foreign minister arrived in Islamabad again Sunday as Pakistan's political and military leadership scrambled to reignite ceasefire negotiations between Tehran and Washington, but President Donald Trump said they could talk by phone instead.
Abbas Araghchi had left Pakistan’s capital late Saturday, creating confusion around an expected second round of talks, but he returned to Islamabad before continuing on to Moscow, Iranian state media said. He had been in Oman, which previously mediated talks and is located on the other side of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
The White House on Friday said it would dispatch envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Islamabad to follow up on historic face-to-face talks earlier this month. But shortly after Araghchi's departure, Trump said he had called off the mission because of a lack of progress with Iran.
“If they want, we can talk but we’re not sending people," Trump told Fox News on Sunday.
Trump last week indefinitely extended the ceasefire that U.S. and Iran agreed to on April 7 that has largely halted the fighting that began with joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Feb. 28. But a permanent settlement remains elusive in the war that has killed thousands of people and shaken the global economy.
A standoff remains at the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global waterway, as Iran restricts movement through it and the U.S. enforces a blockade of Iranian ports.
Iran wants to persuade Oman to support a mechanism to collect tolls from vessels passing through the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s oil flows in peacetime, according to a regional official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter.
Oman’s response wasn’t immediately clear.
The official, who is involved in mediation efforts, also said Iran insists on ending the U.S. blockade before a new round of talks and that Pakistan-led mediators are trying to bridge significant gaps between the countries.
Araghchi also spoke by phone with counterparts in Qatar and Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
Even before Saturday’s developments, Iran’s foreign ministry said any talks would be indirect and Pakistani officials would act as go-betweens, reflecting Tehran's wariness after rounds of indirect talks last year and earlier this year ended with Iran being attacked by the U.S. and Israel.
The economic fallout is growing two months into the war as global shipments of oil, liquefied natural gas, fertilizer and other supplies are disrupted by the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Both sides have continued to make military threats. Iran’s joint military command on Saturday warned that “if the U.S. continues its aggressive military actions, including naval blockades, banditry, and piracy” it will face a “strong response.” Trump last week ordered the military to “shoot and kill” small boats that could be placing mines.
Trump told journalists on Saturday, before a security incident at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, that within 10 minutes of him canceling Witkoff and Kushner’s trip to Islamabad, Iran sent a “much better” proposal.
He did not elaborate but stressed that one of his conditions is that Iran “will not have a nuclear weapon.” The status of Iran's enriched uranium has long been at the center of tensions. Tehran has 440 kilograms (972 pounds) of uranium enriched to 60% purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels, according to the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency.
Syed Mohammad Ali, an independent political analyst in Pakistan, said the delay in the talks must not be seen as a setback and that indirect talks were progressing. He said tensions between Washington and Tehran cannot be eased overnight and the negotiation process requires patience.
"But the good thing is that the ceasefire is holding, and both sides have a desire to end the conflict in a way that does not backfire at home,” Ali said.
Since the war began, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran and at least 2,509 people in Lebanon, where the Israel-Hezbollah fighting resumed two days after the Iran war started.
Also, 23 people have been killed in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon, 13 U.S. service members in the region and six U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon have been killed.
Another ceasefire — between Israel and the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant Hezbollah group — has been extended by three weeks. Hezbollah has not participated in the Washington-brokered diplomacy.
Magdy reported from Cairo and Lidman from Jerusalem. Associated Press writer Will Weissert in Washington contributed to this report.
In this photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, right, shakes hands with Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq during their meeting, in Muscat, Oman, Sunday, April 26, 2026. (Iranian Foreign Ministry via AP)
The wife and children of Fadi Al Zein, who lost both his homes in Israeli strikes in his village of Khiam and in Dahiyeh, sit on the balcony of their heavily damaged apartment building in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
In this photo released by the Pakistan Prime Minister Office, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, fifth left, meets with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, center, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (Pakistan Prime Minister Office via AP)
A woman walks past an anti-U.S. graffiti painted on the wall of the Tehran University on Enqelab-e-Eslami (Islamic Revolution) street in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
In this photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, left, meets with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (Iranian Foreign Ministry via AP)
A woman holds an Iranian flag for a pro-government campaign in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
