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Michael, the biopic of the 'King of Pop' Michael Jackson, has been pushed to a future release date from the initially announced date of October 3, 2025, according to Deadline. Lionsgate has also reportedly stated that the movie may be released in two parts.
CEO Jon Feltheimer, during the company’s Q4 2025 earnings call, shared an important release update on the project.
“In regard to our Michael Jackson biopic, we’re excited about the 3½ hours of amazing footage from producer Graham King and director Antoine Fuqua, and we will be announcing a definitive release strategy and timing in the next few weeks.”
Revealing about the rescheduling of the Michael biopic, Felthimer, on a conference call, said:
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“I would note that it is likely we will move Michael out of the fiscal year which will impact fiscal ’26 financial results but will bolster an already strong fiscal 27 slate.”
Meanwhile, after the delay was announced, podcaster Andy Signore took to X (formerly Twitter) and shared the key reasons why the biopic’s release was pushed to a future date. On May 23, 2025, in his tweet, Signore wrote:
“FYI Michael Jackson bio-pic 'Michael' is pushed to 2026 maybe 2027! So glad I got to see the footage & on-set scenes I did… it’s sooo good! Part of the delays are legal reasons (that are BEYOND frustrating) the other is run time - they admit it may be split into TWO FILMS.”
Meanwhile, Deadline further reported that Adam Fogelson, the chief of Lionsgate films, explained why the film got delayed. During the call after quarterly earnings, he revealed that a more specific confirmation will be revealed in the “coming weeks.”
“At the end, when you look at the music library, when you look at what Michael Jackson was able to deliver in terms of music and contributions to art, whether or not that can be fit into one movie comfortably or not is a question that we are absolutely asking.”
Fogelson also talked about the three-and-a-half-hour cut, which CEO Jon Feltheimer further mentioned during the call. He confirmed that it was not a cut but an “accumulation of scenes” that they had seen.
Who is starring in Michael Jackson's biopic?
Directed by Antoine Fuqua, the biopic of the American singer-songwriter and dancer Michael Jackson stars his 28-year-old nephew, Jaafar Jackson, making his screen debut. Jaafar will play the title role. He is MJ’s elder brother, Jermaine Jackson’s son.
Colman Domingo and Nia Long also star as family heads Joe and Katherine Jackson. Meanwhile, Miles Teller will portray Michael Jackson's attorney and advisor John Branca. The biopic will also see Larenz Tate, Laura Harrier, and Kat Graham as Berry Gordy, Suzanne de Passe, and Diana Ross, respectively.
Notably, the biopic is produced by Graham King, who is known for Bohemian Rhapsody. Written by John Logan, the film reportedly wrapped its principal photography in May 2024. The film also carries a big budget of roughly $155 million.
The first look of the film was shown at CinemaCon on April 10, 2024.
