The late Michael Jackson’s biopic ‘Michael’ is now out to harsh reviews from critics, yet very favourable ones from the fans.
The movie, officially announced as a work in progress on January 30, 2023, has been one of the most anticipated films of 2026. The buzz was further fueled by fans making a challenge to show up at the movies in their favourite ‘MJ’ look.
On Wednesday, I made my way to the cinemas to watch this film, in a replica Thriller jacket that I bought more than two months ago because I wasn’t sure about the shipping time, which had caused a rift between the experts of film and super fans who had caught the international premieres in Berlin and London.
But even before that, in the Jackson clan itself, there was some tension. Janet Jackson gave no input in the movie and refused to be portrayed.
She termed the film dishonest to Michael’s legacy after the initial drafts. And then at a private screening for the family last month, it is reported that she and brother Jermaine Jackson had a heated exchange in which he accused her of being jealous. Jermaine is Jafaar Jackson’s father, the actor who portrays Michael in the movie.
Michael’s daughter, Paris Jackson, didn’t approve of the film either. She said the biopic will make a lot of her father’s fans happy, saying ‘it panders to a specific section of her father’s fandom that still lives in a fantasy.’ She had sent some notes to the producers after reading the draft and they were ignored completely.
‘The thing about these biopics is, it’s fantasy world. They’re not real,’ she said in a story she put up in September 2025, adding, ‘The narrative is being controlled and there’s a lot of inaccuracies and full blown lies. At the end of the day, that doesn’t really fly with me. I don’t like dishonesty.’
Most of the critics’ argument for their low rating is that the film doesn’t even touch on the allegations of Michael Jackson’s abuse of children. To be fair, the timelines didn’t make any sense to bring that up.
The film Michael is a warm story about a boy who had insane vocal talent in the beginning. He truly loved to sing and perform, but his father, Joe Jackson, identified the talent of Michael and his siblings as a way out of his job as a crane operator in a steel mill trying to take care of nine children.
His method ended up working, but the beatings and hardline stances he took with his family meant that he pushed especially a sensitive Michael away from having a relationship with him.
At the first chance he could, Michael fired Joe as his manager. However, his father would find one more way to manipulate Michael into doing his bidding that would have an adverse and long-term effect on Michael’s life, up to his death.
I won’t be spoiling anything if I say this first part, the ending definitely indicates there will be a part two coming up. His story ends in 1988, just after the release of Bad album.
What stood out for me is Colman Domingo’s portrayal of Joe Jackson. Coleman acted with his eyes, his breathing and posture before he even said a word.
I had heard and read the stories about Joe being a sort of disciplinarian and very authoritative father to the Jackson siblings, but the way Colman played the character, I doubt there is anyone who walks out of that movie not believing that Joe Jackson was the devil himself.
It seems he got what he wanted in the end, creating a legacy for the Jackson name, but he was cruel, manipulative and also went behind the back of, especially Michael, to get to the dollar.
For all the praise that’s been heaped on Jafaar, I have to agree that he did play Michael really well. Let’s talk physical appearance first. There are points in the move when the lighting plays a trick on you for a split second. It’s like you see Michael Jackson and then it’s Jafaar playing him again.
The voice is spot on. And the constant rubbing of the knees that Michael would do during interviews to show his anxiety is shown in everyday situations, especially where he had to make impactful decisions. But he also shows the other side of a stern, sad and contemplative Michael.
The film also explores Michael’s relationship with his mother, Katherine. She is portrayed by actress Nia Long. She’s his comfort and encouragement. They watch a lot of TV together.
And that brings me to the criticism of the film. Her arc is interesting. There is a huge shift from who she is at the start and middle of the film, and then who she is in the third act when it pertains to her and Joe Jackson. But they say life is stranger than fiction.
Also, the film doesn’t really delve into the relationship of Michael and his siblings, except for a little bit with Latoya. Yes, the film is called Michael, but a lot more time was spent on the relationship with longtime security guard and close confidant Bill Bray (played by actor KeiLyn Durrel Jones) than the people he spent the first 40 minutes of the movie with.
Also, his quirks are not fully explained. The need to buy animals or toys are behaviours whose psychological basis are not well addressed. But then there are certain things, like philanthropy and speaking out for the marginalised, that we get to see.
But my biggest peeve with the film is the time it took when the music came on. Giving two minutes to a musical performance, in my opinion, took away time to flesh out a stronger storyline and more development of characters and the relationships. It felt excessive.
It is understandable why some people felt like they were more at a concert than the movie. Michael Jackson had done many documentary type productions on what went behind his moves, album creations and curation of performances that it didn’t really need that much delving into about how he would move on stage. Yes, many were iconic moments, but not all shots were essential to the story.
That said, Michael is still an enjoyable movie. It has scenes that will make you emotional, empathetic, want to hold your hand up at the screen and wring Joe’s neck, warm your heart up as Katherine and Michael interact, break out into dance or scream ‘woo!’ Or have you tensed.