Box office numbers are in for the weekend, revealing the Michael Jackson biopic's return to the top spot over several more recent releases.
Michael Reclaims Top Spot
Antoine Fuqua's Michael reclaimed its No. 1 spot in its fourth weekend with $26.3 million domestically, bringing its global earnings to $703.8 million. The controversial movie — which stars Jackson's nephew Jaafar Jackson — is on track to become the highest-grossing musical biopic in the world after it beats out 2018 Queen movie Bohemian Rhapsody.
Devil Wears Prada 2 and Obsession
Michael also beat out The Devil Wears Prada 2, which brought in $18 million at the domestic box office in its third weekend. The sequel to the iconic 2006 original has been a hit in theaters with more than $546.2 million in global ticket sales.
In the third spot, supernatural horror movie Obsession crept up behind Devil Wears Prada 2 with $16.1 million in its first weekend — blowing past its estimated $10 million to $12 million opening. The scary movie, starring newcomer Inde Navarette, has already made back its budget easily as it cost under a million dollars to make. Obsession has landed rave reviews from its first audiences, bringing in a 94% score on Rotten Tomatoes. This marks the first ever major theatrical release for emerging director Curry Barker, who got his start as a breakout sketch comedy star on YouTube.
Other Releases
Other movies out in theaters this weekend included Mortal Kombat II in the fourth spot with $13.4 million, which marks a steep drop for its second weekend. The already-beloved family mystery Sheep Detectives rounded out the box office's top five spots with $9.3 million. The Hugh Jackman film, which also stars Molly Gordon, Nicholas Braun, and Emma Thompson, has grossed $58.7 million worldwide so far.
New releases included Is God Is, Amazon's revenge thriller starring Broadway favorite Kara Young, and Guy Ritchie's action adventure movie In The Grey, which features Jake Gyllenhaal, Eiza Gonzalez and Henry Cavill.
Controversy and Future Prospects
Michael has done consistently well for itself at the box office so far, but the movie has been heavily criticized with claims that the film “whitewashed” Jackson's legacy by ending its story in 1988, years before multiple child sexual abuse allegations against the singer emerged. Plus, although Michael's strong start gave it the second biggest U.S. opening weekend of the year, behind only The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, another blockbuster is expected to shake up the box office next weekend: Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu.
