*Jaafar Jackson stepped into one of Hollywood’s most closely watched roles with the weight of family legacy already attached.
“I knew to make my family proud, I knew I would have to have a work ethic that was incredible and really take on everything the way Michael would take it on,” he told PEOPLE in April at the Los Angeles premiere of “Michael.” If box office returns are any indication, the gamble paid off in historic fashion.
The Antoine Fuqua-directed film, which opened April 24, has rewritten the record books for music biopics. Its worldwide gross now stands above $911.9 million, including $358.6 million domestically and $553.3 million internationally. Those totals have officially pushed “Bohemian Rhapsody” out of the top spot on the all-time music biopic chart.
The milestones accumulated fast. As Comic Basics reports, the film posted the biggest global opening weekend of any music biopic. It became the highest-earning domestic biopic in history and surpassed “La Vie en Rose” to become France’s most successful biopic.
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Global momentum has not let up. The film is on track to become the first official Hollywood release this year to surpass $20 million in Russia and currently sits atop Brazil’s annual box office chart. The momentum in Japan could push the movie past $1 billion worldwide.
Jaafar Jackson stars opposite Colman Domingo as Joseph Jackson, Nia Long as Katherine Scruse-Jackson, Miles Teller as John Branca, and Mike Myers as record executive Walter Yetnikoff. The story covers the King of Pop’s rise through 1988. Jackson died in 2009 at age 50, and with the film’s success, Lionsgate is reportedly exploring a follow-up to cover the years the current film leaves out.
MORE NEWS ON EURWEB.COM: Antoine Fuqua’s ‘Michael’ Becomes Highest-Grossing Music Biopic Ever
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