Lionsgate’s smash-hit biopic Michael might have already broken records at the box office since it hit theatres on 23 April, but that’s not stopping the studio from looking ahead, with the company hard at work on what’s looking to be a much bigger sequel.
As reported by Variety, Lionsgate Studios Motion Picture Chair Adam Fogelson touched on the sequel’s progress during the company’s quarterly earnings call, sharing that the studio is “excited about the progress we’re making.”
“All the conversations that we’ve been having with all of the appropriate parties continue to go exceptionally well, and I would say that there is a ton of incredibly entertaining Michael Jackson story, and much of the biggest and most popular parts of his music catalog that were not touched upon in the first film,” he added.
Fogelson also hinted that the Michael sequel could jump between different periods in the late singer’s life, highlighting events previously missed in the first movie’s timeline. “We can go forwards and backwards in telling this story,” he explained. “There are so many other events that happened, even in the time frame of the original movie, that weren’t touched upon.”
Starring Michael’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, in the titular role, Michael is directed by Antoine Fuqua and centres on the King of Pop during the events of his 1987 “Bad” tour. The film also stars Miles Teller (Top Gun: Maverick) as entertainment lawyer John Branca and Laura Harrier as music producer Suzanne de Passe, alongside Jamal R. Henderson, Tre Horton, Rhyan Hill, Joseph David-Jones (Arrow), and Jessica Sula (Split) as Michael’s siblings Jermaine, Marlon, Tito, Jackie, and La Toya, respectively.
The biopic was a hit from the get-go, rising to attend the biggest opening ever for a music biopic at US$217 million globally, surpassing 2015’s Straight Outta Compton and 2018’s Bohemian Rhapsody. The film has since grossed over US$703 million worldwide, making it one of the biggest hits of 2026.
While Lionsgate is already hard at work on the sequel, Fogelson also added that some of the material cut from the first movie would potentially be used in its follow-up, which could help to lower costs and possibly production time, adding, “We think we’ve got 25 to 30 percent of a second movie already shot from the prior production activity, and so obviously that will have some [financial] benefit ultimately, but we’re going to make sure we make a big and satisfying movie for a global audience once again.”
Kevin is a reformed PC Master Race gamer with a penchant for franchise “duds” like Darksiders III and Dead Space 3. He has made it his life-long mission to play every single major game release – lest his wallet dies trying.
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