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Michael Jackson Biopic: Fan-Critic Divide Rages as Sequel Movie Nears

Published

3 months ago

May 4, 2026

With talk ramping up about a second Michael Jackson biopic, the star’s fans continue to push back against some professional critics over the way that the current Lionsgate movie makes them feel.

Director Antoine Fuqua’s Michael was an immediate smash upon opening theatrically April 24, with its $97 million domestic total marking the biggest weekend launch for a biopic en route to a current global sum surpassing $423 million. The late pop star’s nephew Jaafar Jackson plays the lead role, with Colman Domingo, Nia Long, Miles Teller, Laura Harrier and Larenz Tate rounding out the cast.

Michael holds a 97 percent fan approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but its critical score stands at just 38 percent. Among the many social posts on the topic was one viral tweet chiding reviewers who had “legit lost the plot” and declaring that “there needs to be a major shift in criticism.” (Needless to say, memes ensued.) Social media users have attributed the disparity to critics taking into account that Michael was intended as a lengthy film spanning the star’s complete life, including child abuse allegations and other scandals, but that the third act was retooled due to legal issues. Instead, the film ends its story in 1988, with a follow-up feature in active development from Lionsgate.

“I do think the critical response seems a bit disingenuous, just compared to the other string of biopics that we’ve seen,” Joe Vogel, author of the 2011 biography Man in the Music, tells The Hollywood Reporter about higher Rotten Tomatoes critic scores for music films like Bohemian Rhapsody, Rocketman and Elvis, all of which spurred discussion over whether they seemed overly sanitized. “They all follow a pretty similar blueprint, so it seems to me that the Michael film is being singled out, in some ways, because of what’s not in the film, as opposed to what was actually in it. In essence, Michael is about introducing him to new audiences. It’s disingenuous for critics to expect this two-hour biopic that goes to the late ’80s to do everything.”

THR gave the movie a generally positive review, calling it “surprisingly affecting” while adding, “The film leaves itself open to accusations of making Michael a saint, which will not sit well with the cancel crowd.” Michael centers on Jackson’s early years as part of his family’s band, the Jackson 5, and the release of his first solo albums.

Jaafar Jackson as Michael Jackson in *Michael.*

Glen Wilson/Lionsgate

“Filmmakers have the right to make the films that they choose to make and with the subjects that they choose to make. It’s the reason why critics are important,” says Mark Anthony Neal, a Duke University professor who teaches a course on Jackson. “The last thing we want are critics who basically co-sign what an artist is doing, whether or not we’re talking about a music artist, filmmaker or author. That’s not the job of a critic. That’s the job of a publicist, and we cannot turn critics and journalists into publicists for art. That’s not their job.”

Inherent in the debate surrounding the disparity of reactions to the film is the awareness that the Jackson estate has been involved in the making of Michael and has a substantial vested interest in portraying the artist in a favorable light. Analysts see biopics as a key way for those overseeing an artists’ music catalog to increase song sales and streaming numbers.

“Expecting a sanctioned biopic to deliver unvarnished truth misunderstands the dynamics: The estate is the gatekeeper, and the film is a catalog activation strategy — a two-hour advertisement engineered to send audiences straight to streaming platforms to rediscover the back catalog,” says attorney James Sammataro. His law firm, Pryor Cashman, represents Sony Music, which owns a stake in Jackson’s catalog.

Vogel, whose book credits also include biographies on Prince and James Baldwin, notes that there “are always some tensions” when dealing with a public figure’s estate. “There was some back and forth, I would say, because they’re very protective,” Vogel recalls of working on his Jackson book. He points out that his book had a generally smooth path due to his decision to not focus much on the controversies: “In my case, since really, the whole point of my book was to put the emphasis on the artist, there weren’t too many issues.”

Certainly, Michael is hardly the first music biopic to see critics and audiences challenging whether the full story is hitting the big screen. And given that the unsavory headlines surrounding Jackson generally came after the events depicted in the first film, it’s possible that the debate over a second movie could get louder, depending on how the scandals are addressed.

“The controversy surrounding Michael is not new: Bohemian Rhapsody was an estate-endorsed, score-settling session that made $900 million despite critical reception,” Sammataro says of the Oscar-winning film about Queen’s Freddie Mercury. “A slew of musical biopics followed in its path. Bob Marley: One Love, produced and endorsed by the Marley estate, depicted Marley as a beatific figure who frictionlessly moves through a world teeming with conflict — the same glossy template, a different icon. The pattern is structural, not incidental.”

Despite their propensity to fuel debate — not to mention the lukewarm critical and commercial response to last year’s Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere — plenty of Hollywood music biopics remain in the works, most notably Sony’s four-film project about the Beatles that has sign-off from the band and its label. While some observers hope for an ideal world in which independent movies can tell grittier narratives about key music figures while also including the hit songs, there is still an argument to be made that an estate’s involvement does not necessarily preclude a studio biopic from holding value for audiences.

“That a biopic serves the catalog doesn’t mean it fails the audience,” notes Sammataro. “Even imperfect biopics do something streaming algorithms cannot: They restore context. They remind audiences that songs were written by real people, at particular moments in time, often under extraordinary circumstances. For a younger viewer encountering Jackson’s catalog through a playlist, a film — even a flawed, protective one — can be the thing that turns a familiar hook into an artist worth understanding. That’s a real cultural function, even when it’s also a commercial one.”

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Justice Smith Addresses Fans On ‘Heated Rivalry’ Harris Drover Casting

Published

2 minutes ago

August 10, 2026

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The casting of most beloved literary characters in screen adaptation inevitably creates online discourse as fans of the books have their own preconceived notions for what the characters should look like. Heated Rivalry is no exception, with the announcement on Friday that Justice Smith and Charlie Gillespie will play Harris Drover and Troy Barrett, respectively, in Season 2 of the hugely popular series based on Rachel Reid’s Game Changer books, triggering a strong reaction.

Smith appeared to address the discourse on his Instagram Story.

“I am moved by the support and love I’m getting from fans in my dms, fans who have welcomed me with open arms and who already feel a responsibility to protect me.”

The protecting part is likely a reference to negative comments posted online, a lot of them pointed at Smith’s casting.

“I am honored to play a character that you all care about deeply and I promise that I will take good care of him if you give me the chance,” he wrote, adding, “I am beyond excited for the experience.”

The negative online response to the Harris and Troy castings also prompted Reid to remind fans that Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams — now loved around the world for their portrayal of Ilya Rozanov and Shane Hollander, respectively — weren’t an easy sell either.

“Thinking about all the people last summer who told me the casting for llya and Shane was wrong and bad…,” Reid wrote on her Instagram Story.

Harris Drover and Troy Barrett are the central couple in Role Model, the fifth book in Reid’s bestselling Game Changer series, which is being used as source material for Season 2 alongside the Ilya and Shane follow-up book, The Long Game.

Troy is a hockey player on Ilya’s team with a history of bullying, while Harris is the team’s cheerful social media manager,

“From the start of the casting process, we knew we were looking for actors who could create something truly special together and bring that same depth and heart to the screen,” Heated Rivalry creator Jacob Tierney and fellow executive producer Brendan Brady said on Friday about the search for Harris and Troy. “Justice and Charlie do exactly that. They immediately connected with the vulnerability and resilience at the core of these characters, bringing an instinctive understanding of who Harris and Troy are.”

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Set Decorators TV Awards Go To ‘Widow’s Bay,’ ‘Fallout,’ ‘Wednesday,’ More

Published

31 minutes ago

August 10, 2026

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Set Decorators Society of America (SDSA) tonight honored the best in class for contemporary, fantasy, science fiction variety, reality and period series. Apple’s Widow’s Bay & Palm Royale, Netflix’s Wednesday and Amazon’s Fallout among the big winners in the hour-long categories.

The SDSA Awards are presented annually by the Set Decorators Society of America. The SDSA Film Awards and SDSA Television Awards recognize outstanding work on a wide range of productions in each medium. The TV awards were announced tonight.

FULL WINNERS LIST:

Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a One Hour Contemporary Series
Widow’s Bay
Set Decoration by Jennifer Engel with Production Design by Steve Arnold

Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a One Hour Fantasy or Science Fiction Series
Fallout
Set Decoration by Julie Ochipinti with Production Design by Howard Cummings
Wednesday
Set Decoration by David Morison SDSA and Neville Gaynor SDSA with Production Design by Mark Scruton and Philip Murphy SDSA

Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a One Hour Period Series
Palm Royale
Set Decoration by Ellen Reede SDSA with Production Design by Jon Carlos

Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a Television Movie or Limited Series
Beef
Set Decoration by Kellie Jo Tinney SDSA with Production Design by Grace Yun

Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a Half-Hour Single Camera Series
Hacks
Set Decoration by Jennifer Lukehart SDSA with Production Design by Rob Tokarz

Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a Half-Hour Multi-Camera Series
Happy’s Place
Set Decoration by Amy Feldman SDSA with Production Design by Glenda Rovello

Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a Short Format: Web Series, Music Video, or Commercial
Offset & John Legend “Never Let Go”

Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a Variety, Reality, or Competition Series
The Muppet Show
Set Decoration by Bethany Barton SDSA Associate with Production Design by Denise Pizzini

Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a Daytime Series
The Bold and the Beautiful
Set Decoration by Prim Rosales SDSA, Beth Wooke SDSA, Prerna Chawla SDSA, Charlotte Garnell SDSA, Chelsea Mondelli SDSA Associate, Michelle Hall SDSA, Linda Louise Sheets, and Jon Bush SDSA with Production Design by Lou A. Trabbie III SDSA

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‘House Of The Dragon’ Season Three Finale Recap

Published

1 hour ago

August 10, 2026

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SPOILER ALERT: This story contains details from episode 8 of House Of The Dragon on HBO

“I AM THE PRINCE THAT WAS PROMISED.”

These are the words Queen Rhaenyra screams in the season three finale to the people of Kings Landing as she unveils the future prophecy and sets the stage for what is sure to be an eventful final season.

The episode starts with the news of the return of Aegon’s dragon, leading Rhaenyra to not only put a search out for Aegon’s dragon but have Daemon move forward with the the attack on Tumbleton.

Rhaenyra also makes the drastic decision of relieving Mysaria of her duties as Master of whispers and banishing her from Kings Landing. This comes after the the two shared an intimate moment in previous episode.

As Ormund Hightower and Daemon Targaryen prepare for the battle of Tumbleton, brothers Aegon and Aemon reunite at Harrenhal to discuss plans on how they will take back the Iron Throne.

Even after delivering imprisoned Sea Serpent, Daemon denies peace talks from Gwayne Hightower setting the stage for the siege of Tumbleton, living up to the hype fans have waited weeks for.

The bloody battle not only leaves the city in ruins but also sees fiery end to Hightower ironically at the hands of Ulf the White and his dragon, who in the previous episode he had persuaded to cross lines and fight for his side. Ulf ultimately turns on both sides burning the city to the ground as Daemon is force to flee.

Back in Kings Landing, Rhaenyra comes to find that her prisoner, Helaena has taken her own life but left a parting gift for the queen the foreshadows a potential prophecy of Rhaenyra’s path towards madness.

When it came to mapping out not just this season, but season four as well, co-creator and showrunner Ryan Condal said that he and all the writers mapped out a “superstructure” that gave them an idea of how the series would end and once that came together plotting the rest of season three was seamless.

We were lucky enough in the breaking of season 3 because we knew at that point that for sure it was going to be a 4 season show that essentially when Sarah and I sat down with all the writers, we essentially broke the back of season 3 and 4 together, at least in the sort of superstructure of it,” Condal said. “So it was really planning out kind of from here to the end and trying to structure it in a way that had all the peaks and valleys of drama and to keep the pacing and to hit all the big set pieces that we have to hit. Once we kind of laid it all out, it felt like it would be really fun to bookend the season with the 2 biggest sequences we had ever done. So episode one, Battle of the Gullet, episode eight, the Battle of Tumbleton.”

Rhaenyra makes several decisions in this weeks episode that are establishing a clear path of no return for the upcoming final season and its hard not to see a similar trajectory to another famous Westeros character whose dark choices led to a tragic end. Emma D’Arcy, who plays Rhaenyra, understands how fans could see parallels between Rhaenra and Daenerys Targaryen and believes their similar paths has a lot to do with what the Iron Throne represents for all that seek it.

“I think the parallels do call to the greater themes of, of the song of ice and fire universe, which is pride and power and how power corrupts and how far it corrupts, it can change good people into corrupted people,” D’Arcy said. “It can take corrupted people and make them real villains. And other people like this era, it can simply just destroy them.”

As for the highly-anticipated battle of Tumbleton, Condal says he drew comparisons to when “the Nazis invaded Paris” while ultimately wanting something that looked and felt like a traditional medieval siege.

So all season long, we’re kind of setting up this, this classic medieval siege, which is really where we wanted to get to,” Condall says. “The concept of that battle was that Ormand had basically done all he could to blunt the threat of Rhaenyra’s greatest power, which is that she has, or had, six dragons under her command at that point. He sees his army as better trained and better suited, than the river men that are coming to attack. He knows the ground, he’s inside the city. They have to come over the walls, sacrifice a bunch of their men. So that’s where that’s where we all started, and then it was like, okay, well, we need to set to do this in a big location, to build it on, and who are POV characters? It was a very, very, very complex thing to fold all together, but, um, we just, we wanted to do the, you know, a classic medieval siege. was, was, that was the, the, the most, the elevator pitch for the finale.”

With the fourth season also marking the final season of the show, Condal says while he saw Game of Thrones as an epic story, he always viewed House of the Dragon as more of tragedy and while he won’t say much he does hint that this last season we be even bigger then the one we just watched.

“We have we have an incredible season coming as crazy and big as season 3 was,” Condall said. “I think season 4 is going to be even bigger. It’s a great privilege to be able to tell a story and to be able to write the ending and to control when and where that ending happens. This is not a given in making television, certainly. So we’re very excited to get back in and we have new characters and new dragons and new locations that I think are gonna make it a very worthy final season.