The extremely anticipated biopic about Michael Jackson has been delayed by six months, pushing its launch from April 18, 2025, to October 3, 2025, Lionsgate confirmed.
The movie, titled Michael, casts Jaafar Jackson because the King of Pop, portraying his uncle’s rise from a baby star with the Jackson 5 to his celebrity standing within the music business, up till his last days earlier than his dying in 2009.
Lionsgate’s choice to reschedule the launch to fall suggests a strategic transfer in positioning the movie as an awards season contender, a tactic generally seen in movies geared toward nominations.
Set to hit theaters alongside Roofman, a criminal offense thriller starring Channing Tatum and Kirsten Dunst, Michael may even arrive every week previous to Disney’s sci-fi epic Tron: Ares, starring Jared Leto.
The timing displays heightened competitors for each field workplace earnings and potential honors on the awards circuit.
Directed by Antoine Fuqua, finest identified for his work on Coaching Day, the film will characteristic performances from Colman Domingo as household patriarch Joe Jackson, Nia Lengthy as matriarch Katherine Jackson, and Miles Teller as Michael’s longtime supervisor John Branca.
The script, penned by famend screenwriter John Logan of Skyfall and Gladiator fame, goals to seize pivotal moments all through Jackson’s life.
Fuqua, who shared an unique preview of footage at San Diego Comedian-Con in July 2024, has expressed a private connection to the undertaking.
“Michael was a giant affect on my profession,” Fuqua mentioned, explaining his motivation for taking up the undertaking. “He was an unimaginable artist and a human being, and we’re exploring that.”
The movie is predicted to span a considerable runtime and can characteristic a musical catalog of 30 of Jackson’s hits, that’s integral to capturing the essence of the Thriller legend’s story.
Co-produced by John Branca alongside Graham King, who took Bohemian Rhapsody to box-office success, Michael carries sure expectations of each essential and industrial acclaim.