![\""Michael"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1776785889_499_0x0.jpg\")
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“Michael” key art featuring Juliano Krue Valdi and Jaafar Jackson.<\/p>\n
Lionsgate<\/p>\n
The first reviews for the Michael Jackson biopic Michael are out, and Rotten Tomatoes critics are not entirely thrilled with the big-screen story of the King of Pop.<\/p>\n
Starring the late music icon\u2019s nephew\/Jermaine Jackson\u2019s son, Jaafar Jackson, in the title role, Michael<\/a> plays in Thursday previews before opening in theaters nationwide on Friday. Also starring Juliano Krue Valdi as the young Michael Jackson<\/a>, Michael traces the singer\u2019s career as a child artist with his brothers in The Jackson 5 through his solo career as an adult on his way to becoming one of the most influential voices the pop music worldwide.<\/p>\n ForbesRotten Tomatoes Critics Rank Top 10 Pop Music BiopicsBy Tim Lammers<\/a><\/p>\n Directed by Antoine Fuqua from a screenplay by John Logan, Michael also stars Colman Domingo as Jackson family patriarch Joe Jackson, Nia Long as Joe\u2019s wife and Michael\u2019s mother, Katherine, and Miles Teller as Michael\u2019s attorney, John Branca.<\/p>\n The review embargo for Michael<\/a> lifted Tuesday morning. As of the publication of this article, Michael has a has a 26% \u201crotten\u201d critics\u2019 score Rotten Tomatoes\u2019<\/a> Tomatometer based on 42 reviews.<\/p>\n RT\u2019s Critics Consensus, Audience Summary and Popcornmeter score based on verified user ratings are still pending.<\/p>\n ForbesAlan Osmond, Oldest Sibling In Osmond Brothers Singing Group, Dies At 76By Tim Lammers<\/a><\/p>\n Note: This article will be updated as more RT reviews are posted and Michael\u2019s critics\u2019 score changes.<\/p>\n What Are Individual Critics Saying About \u2018Michael\u2019?<\/p>\n David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter is among the top critics on RT<\/a> who gives Michael a \u201cfresh\u201d score. Rooney writes in his RT review summary, \u201cIf you\u2019re even remotely nostalgic for the time when his songs were ubiquitous on pop charts, at parties and on dance floors worldwide, the movie will be a warm rush of transporting pleasure.\u201d<\/p>\n Also high on Michael is USA Today critic Melissa Ruggieri, who writes in her \u201cfresh\u201d RT review summary, \u201cJaafar may share his late uncle\u2019s megawatt smile, lithe frame and Bambi eyelashes. But his liquid dance moves \u2014 highlighted as he teaches gang members the footwork in the \u2018Beat It\u2019 video \u2014 and soft-spoken cadence are studied to perfection.\u201d<\/p>\n ForbesStudio Delays \u2018Project Hail Mary\u2019 Streaming Release And Extends Theatrical RunBy Tim Lammers<\/a><\/p>\n Owen Gleiberman of Variety also gives Michael a \u201cfresh\u201d score, but he has reservations about the film. Gleiberman writes in his RT review summary, \u201cSimply put, this is not a movie about Michael Jackson\u2019s dark side. Yet the surprise of Michael is how well it plays, and what an engrossing middle-of-the-road biopic it is.\u201d<\/p>\n Derek Smith of Slant Magazine is among the top critics on RT who gives Michael a \u201crotten\u201d score. Smith writes in his RT review summary, \u201cThe film turns the realities of a tragic, deeply complicated life into a sanitized popcorn film.\u201d<\/p>\n Tim Grierson of Screen International shares Smith\u2019s sentiments, writing in his RT review summary, \u201cBy denying any contradictory views of its subject, Michael seems disconnected from reality \u2014 a problem the massively famous and troubled Jackson would himself come to embody.\u201d<\/p>\n