Apr 23, 2026 7:44pm IST
‘Michael’ Box Office Prediction: Will Jaafar Jackson’s Film Beat ‘Project Hail Mary’ to Become the Biggest Hollywood Opener of 2026?
“Michael,” the biopic on Michael Jackson, the ‘King of Pop’, has received unprecedented attention since its announcement. With its release scheduled for tomorrow, global pre-sales have already touched new highs.
In the Indian market, which boasts a substantial fanbase for the late artist, demand at the ticket windows has been strong. The film has secured ₹1.23 crore (Today’s paid previews), ₹1.73 crore (Friday), ₹1.55 crore (Saturday), and ₹1.26 crore (Sunday) in bookings, according to Recobee.AI.
Currently, “Project Hail Mary” holds the record of the biggest opener of the year in India with a first-day collection of ₹2.50 crore, and “Michael” is expected to easily surpass that.
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Veteran trade analyst Komal Nahta tells Variety India that the musical biographical drama will collect between ₹3 and ₹4 crore on its opening, with a chance of touching ₹15 crore in its first weekend.
Ramesh Bala, a prominent trade tracker from Chennai, also shares that, irrespective of the reviews, “Michael” will open strong at the Indian box office. “There is a lot of buzz about ‘Michael’ since the trailer release. Given the pop icon’s massive popularity here, right from the ’80s, his fandom is eagerly looking forward to watching it. This evening the premieres are starting and tomorrow we have full-fledged shows. The advance booking, from what I have seen, for this evening and tomorrow, tickets worth ₹4 crore have been sold. So, in all probability, taking today (April 23) and tomorrow, at the close of day one, the figure should be around ₹8 crore across India,” says Bala. Speaking about the business of the first weekend, he adds, “In Hollywood, the movie has received mixed reviews. Hopefully, here, despite the reviews, if people still go and watch it for him, it can do business worth, say,₹25 crore.”
Apart from Jaafar, the movie also stars Juliano Krue Valdi, Nia Long, Laura Harrier, Miles Teller and Colman Domingo.
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