The teaser trailer for Michael, following its global launch, garnered 116.2 million views within 24 hours. It is the highest view tally associated with a 24-hour trailer launch in Lionsgate’s entire history. It is also the highest view count associated with a music biopic/concert film in motion picture history, according to findings from WaveMetrix.
The long-awaited biographical film on the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, eclipsed the first 24-hour worldwide views for Taylor Swift: Eras Tour, which registered 96.1 million views following a trailer launch on August 31, 2023, as well as Bob Marley: One Love, which registered 60.1 million views following a July 6, 2023, trailer launch, Bohemian Rhapsody, which registered 57.6 million views following a May 15, 2018, trailer launch, as well as Searchlight’s Bob Dylan film, A Complete Unknown, which registered 47.2 million views on July 24, 2024.
The Michael trailer premiered on the morning of Lionsgate’s latest earnings announcement. Within the first six hours, it garnered more than 30 million views worldwide, representing a 50% increase from the views generated by the John Wick Chapter 4 trailers during the same period.
Fans can catch the Michael teaser trailer next weekend as an additional feature to the upcoming film, Now You See, Now You Don’t, released by Lionsgate. The biopic, directed by Antoine Fuqua, is set to open on April 24, 2026. Jackson’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, plays his celebrity uncle.
The other actors in the main cast are Nia Long as Katherine Jackson, Coleman Domingo as Joe Jackson, and Miles Teller as John Branca. John Logan, a three-time Oscar nominee, wrote the script for Michael.
Lionsgate will distribute the film in the United States, while Kino Films will handle its distribution in Japan. Universal will distribute it everywhere else.
