Michael (2026) on Netflix
Joseph Jackson turns his sons into the Jackson 5 and puts Michael on lead vocals. Suzanne De Passe discovers the group in Chicago, and Motown signs them a year later.
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- Netflix2.8/5
- IMDb7.4/10187,478 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes38%
Trailer
Plot summary
Joseph Jackson, a steel worker in Gary, Indiana, gathers his sons Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael into a band, the Jackson 5, with Michael singing lead. Months of rehearsal pay off when Suzanne De Passe spots the group in Chicago and Motown signs them; the family leaves Gary for the Hayvenhurst mansion in Encino, California. Motown founder Berry Gordy comes to believe Michael has more potential on his own. In 1978 Michael records his first adult solo album, Off the Wall, with Quincy Jones as producer, but Joseph, who sees himself as the source of his children's fortunes, keeps a grip on that career and sends Michael back on the road with his brothers. Insecure about his appearance, Michael has surgery to shrink his nose.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Michael (2026)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- All references to Michael Jackson's 1993 abuse allegations, including scenes of Derek Luke as Johnnie Cochran, were removed from the film after the filmmakers discovered a clause in a settlement with one of Jackson's accusers forbidding any mention of him in a film.
- Paris Jackson filed a legal complaint against her father's estate executors, John Branca and John McClain, over the casting of Miles Teller as attorney John Branca, accusing Branca of trying to "enrich and aggrandize himself" through such costly casting at the estate's expense.
- After 2025 reshoots, reports said the budget had grown to $200 million with the film's new ending alone costing roughly $50 million, making it one of the most expensive biopics ever; Variety disputed this, reporting the reshoots added only $10 to 15 million, funded by the Jackson estate.
- The film's teaser trailer drew 30 million views in its first six hours and 116.2 million in 24 hours, more than any other Lionsgate trailer's opening day and more than any musical biopic or concert film trailer ever, surpassing Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour's 96.1 million.
- Kat Graham had originally been cast to play Diana Ross in the film, but her scenes were cut before release due to unspecified legal considerations.
- Cinematographer Robert Richardson was originally hired to shoot the film, but left the project to work on Quentin Tarantino's The Movie Critic, which itself was later canceled before it could be made.
- Work on rewriting the film's script was delayed for a time after screenwriter John Logan's own house was damaged in the real-life Palisades Fire during production.
- During post-production, the filmmakers added a closing title card reading "His story continues", worded deliberately so it could refer either to the rest of Michael Jackson's real career or hint at a follow-up film.
