"Michael" REVIEW

Published on 5/4/2026 

Written by: Braylon Mitchell 

Directed by: Antoine Fuqua 

Cast: Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo, Nia Long, Juliano Valdi, Jon Bernthal, Mike Myers, etc. 

Plot:  The story of the famous musician Michael Jackson, known as the King of Pop. 

REVIEW 

I don't think there was any way that this film wouldn't stir the pot. Michael Jackson is one of those figures whose career, reputation, and image remains larger than life. He's quite possibly the most popular entertainer of all time, and quite possibly the most controversial of all time- so in one way or another, when it came to making a music biopic about his life it was bound to be as polarizing as the man himself was. The film's negative critical reception alone has been the cause of yet another stir online over critics versus audiences. A tiring argument, I'm afraid. Not to mention, the film faced many hurdles in its production process- including the scrapping of the film's entire already filmed third act due to legal complications, instead ending the film a few years before covering the controversies that began to shape the later half of his life. As a film critic, I don't think its fair to judge the film for what it doesn't have but I do think it's fair game to acknowledge how the hole left behind affects what is covered in the film. Ultimately, to no surprise of my own this film is your standard music biopic. It plays things safe, it follows the same tropes we've seen countless times before, and it never wishes to really add anything meaningful or new to how many know Michael Jackson. You could watch this film with a "predictable music biopic trope" checklist in hand and by the end of it have two or three pages full of checkmarks. The character of Joe Jackson felt so much like a walking, talking trope that I couldn't even fully buy Colman Domingo's performance- which is such a bummer because Domingo is easily one of my favorite actors currently working. Yet, the film does indeed achieve every music biopic's ultimate goal of being a certified crowdpleaser- and even more so than others in it's increasingly disinteresting crowd, this film is a hell of a lot of fun. Especially seeing this film with a crowd of people singing and cheering to themselves, the energy that this film holds in recreating musical moments of Michael's life and with Jaafar Jackson's performance as his uncle feels electric. I can't say this is all that great of a film, but I can say it's all that fun of a film- and to me, that's got to mean something. 

THREE BEST ELEMENTS

• Jaafar Jackson's performance. His performance is worth the price of admission alone. If I had to guess, the main reason a Michael Jackson biopic wasn't made sooner was because of the seemingly impossible obstacle of casting the right person to fill into the shoes- or fill them without feeling like an SNL impression. Well, they ended up with the best possible outcome of finding someone both blood related to Michael and talented enough to play the part convincingly. Jaafar nails the voice, the emotion, and especially the dancing/showmanship. He gives a pretty fantastic performance. 

• Juliano Valdi's performance. With only a fraction of the screentime that Jaafar has, child actor Juliano Valdi gives a very good performance as young Michael. 

• The production design and costume design. Very accurate, detailed design in recreating these iconic locations and outfits of Michael's career. 

WORST ELEMENT 

• It's thinness. The film is at its best when delving into the personal connections in Michael's life and his creative process, too bad the film oft prefers to remain painstakingly surface level. This'll be the target of pointed fingers singling out an example of why they hate the predictability of most music biopics. 

RATING

6/10

Go see it in theaters with a crowd, buddy!