Updated April 21, 2026, 11:22 a.m. ET
If the Michael Jackson biopic “Michael” sands down the edges of the King of Pop’s rise to glory and gives viewers an overly simplistic version of events, then what it tells mostly works, thanks to the film’s exceptional lead performances.
Biopics tend to tighten up narratives for the sake of runtimes, backstage legal drama and other factors. For Hollywood, it’s the cost of doing business. So in this version, for example, the Jackson 5’s Motown chapter skips over Detroit and unfolds entirely in Los Angeles. And in this version, Janet Jackson simply does not exist.
It goes without saying that “Michael” — which was produced in partnership with the Michael Jackson estate — also ignores Jackson’s myriad controversies and accusations of child molestation. Save those for the sequel, maybe?
But what is presented — the story of a young boy pushed by his father into showbiz who becomes the world’s most famous pop singer despite never getting the chance to grow up — gives a glimpse into not only Michael the artist, but Michael the person. And he’s brought to moonwalking life by Jaafar Jackson.
Jaafar, Jackson’s nephew (he’s the son of Jermaine Jackson), plays Michael with saintly purity and innocence, and he nails the singer’s kindhearted essence. He looks and sounds the part, zeroing in on Michael’s physicality on stage, and he radiates a tenderness from within.
And as his domineering father Joe, Colman Domingo is a hard presence, whipping his boys — literally in the case of Michael — into showbiz-ready shape. “In this life, you’re either a winner or a loser,” he tells his sons, drilling success into their heads at an early age. He is the dark, manipulative monster who pushes Michael to eventually leave him and blaze his own path, but the damage he inflicts along the way is lasting.
There’s not a lot of room for others in “Michael,” as supporting players are pushed to the edges. Nia Long is affectionate as Michael’s mother, Katherine; Miles Teller doesn’t get to do much as Michael’s lawyer, John Branca; and KeiLyn Durrel Jones is a steady presence as Michael’s bodyguard, Bill Bray.
Michael’s brothers are given such short shrift that they are barely named, and sister La Toya (Jessica Sula) doesn’t get a character beyond wearing a headband. Larenz Tate plays Berry Gordy Jr. for a grand total of two scenes.
But Jaafar Jackson shines, and you come to “Michael” for Michael. Kudos also to Juliano Krue Valdi, who is dynamite as the younger version of Michael, whose otherworldly singing and dancing leads Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5 on their path to glory.
“Michael” starts out with the Jackson boys in their living room, performing for father Joe. After school, late nights, they’re performing, tightening their craft until they’re ready to go on the road.
At a performance in Chicago they’re spotted side stage by Motown’s Suzanne de Passe (Laura Harrier), who sends them along to Motown in Los Angeles where they sign a deal with the label. Again, not really how it happened, but OK. (As if to make up for its whitewashing from the story, the Motor City is later given an acknowledgement when one of the Jackson brothers sports a Detroit T-shirt in a pair of scenes.)
The Jackson 5 become superstars and Michael is shot out to the front, but he remains in a state of arrested development, relating more to his pets than to other people and frozen in time with his children’s storybook of “Peter Pan.” There’s a sweet scene where Michael goes on a shopping spree at a toy store and brings home Twister to play with his brothers, who couldn’t be less interested. (He winds up playing with his pet chimp Bubbles, rendered here as a somewhat distracting CGI creation, instead.)
That core of childlike sincerity is key to Jaafar’s portrayal of Michael, and he embodies that throughout his performance. We also see his musical genius as he’s working out the vocal ticks in his head over the opening rhythms of “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough,” part of the wall-to-wall Jackson 5 and MJ records that blanket the film.
There’s so much ground to cover with Michael’s story that John Logan’s screenplay becomes a parade of greatest hits: the electrifying Motown 25 performance, the making of the music video for “Thriller,” the damaging incident on the set of the Pepsi commercial, etc. There’s little time for nuance, so every line of dialogue has to point back to or signal something important in Michael’s life.
Director Antoine Fuqua (“Training Day,” the “Equalizer” films) is a slick visual stylist, and he keeps the story moving, even if he doesn’t have time to plunge the psychological depths of his characters. It’s a surface-level servicing of the Michael Jackson tale, a story of Michael Jackson if not the story of Michael Jackson.
But in the realm of superstar biopics, “Michael” finds its rhythm, and Jaafar Jackson gives it its pulsating a heartbeat. Jackson’s life was complicated, and no version of events is going to satisfy all parties. “Michael” mainly exists as a celebration of Jackson’s pop excellence, and Jaafar Jackson is the life behind its eyes.
agraham@detroitnews.com
‘Michael’
GRADE: B-
Rated PG-13: for some thematic material, language, and smoking
Running time: 127 minutes
In theaters
