‘Michael’ Starts Strong Overseas With $18.5 Million

“Michael” is starting strong at international box office, generating $18.5 million on opening day. Those ticket sales include $16.6 million on Wednesday and $1.9 million in Tuesday’s previews.

Lionsgate’s musical biopic about the rise of Michael Jackson debuts in North America and 82 overseas markets on Friday. Through the weekend, “Michael” is poised to dominate over global box office charts with projections of $65 million to $75 million (or more) domestically and $75 million to $80 million internationally.

So far, the poor reviews from critics aren’t slowing the King of Pop’s roll. “Michael” had the strongest in France with $2.6 million from 743 screens on Wednesday, followed by the United Kingdom and Ireland with $2.6 million, Italy with $1.3 million from 480 locations, Mexico with $1.1 million and Spain with $1.1 million from 520 screens. Universal, which is rolling out the film in international markets, estimates these figures are pacing ahead of the 2018 Queen-centric “Bohemian Rhapsody” and 2023’s father-of-the-atomic-bomb drama “Oppenheimer” in most territories; those films are two of the highest-grossing biopics in the past eight years.

Antoine Fuqua directed “Michael,” which charts the singer’s early days in the Jackson 5 to becoming one of the biggest entertainers on the planet. Jaafar Jackson, the real-life nephew of Michael Jackson, is portraying the King of Pop in the film, with Colman Domingo and Nia Long playing his parents, Joe and Katherine Jackson.

More to come…