The new Michael Jackson biopic, "Michael", is set to hit theaters on April 24, 2026, but social media users and critics are already debating its quality and comparing it to other music biopics, including the controversial 2017 Tupac Shakur film "All Eyez on Me".
Following the premiere of "Michael" on April 10, 2026, the movie received mostly negative reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 36% approval rating from 120 critics, while Metacritic scores it at 38 out of 100. Critics pointed out the film's omission of the child sexual abuse allegations against Michael Jackson but praised Jaafar Jackson's performance in the lead role.
Per Variety, Jaafar Jackson, Michael Jackson's biological nephew and son of Jermaine Jackson, makes his feature film debut in "Michael' The movie also stars Nia Long, Laura Harrier, Miles Teller, and Colman Domingo. Directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by John Logan, the biopic aims to chronicle the legendary singer's life and career.
Amid the criticism of "Michael", fans on X (formerly Twitter) sparked a heated debate over the worst music biopics ever made. One viral tweet claimed there is "nothing worse" than "All Eyez on Me", which centers around rapper Tupac Shakur.
One user shared their agreement with this sentiment, "NOTHING. one of the worst movies ever."
Nothing is worse than that Tupac biopic
— Doom Coming (@Getthebagcoach) April 21, 2026
However, not all agreed with that assessment. Another user offered a different perspective, "Y'all act like that Michael Jackson biopic with Flex don't exist or the lifetime Aaliyah biopic, lifetime, Whitney Houston biopic. Tupac joint was bad but it wasn't worse than them."
Others brought up additional films in the debate. One user mentioned, "I assume you didn't see that Bob Marley movie that came out last year then. I got some good sleep in the theater that night."
Another chimed in with a strong opinion about a different biopic, "Naw u trippin, that Biggie Smalls one was the absolute worst of all time."
The premiere of the "Michael" biopic and the reviews that followed have sparked ongoing conversations about how music legends' stories are told on screen. Jaafar Jackson's performance has been praised as one of the best parts of the movie, even though the reviews were mixed.
According to the report by HotNewHipHop, the success of this film demonstrates just how challenging it can be to create films that are appreciated by both critics and fans, particularly if they center on controversial personalities such as Michael Jackson and Tupac Shakur.
"Michael" will be in theaters across the country starting April 24, 2026.
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