Lionsgate has revealed the first teaser trailer for Michael, the long-awaited, embattled biopic about Michael Jackson from director Antoine Fuqua. The film stars Jackson’s own nephew, Jaafar Jackson, as the world famous pop star, alongside Nia Long (as Michael’s mother, Katherine), Colman Domingo (as his father, Joe), Miles Teller (as his attorney, John Branca), Laura Harrier (as Suzanne de Passe), and Juliano Krue Valdi (as young Michael). It will be released in theaters and IMAX on April 24th, 2026.
The teaser finds Jackson finds the pop legend recording with Quincy Jones, filming the music video for “Thriller,” and moonwalking to the cheers of adoring fans — while seemingly avoiding any of the more troubling aspects of his personal life. That shouldn’t come as much of a surprise: Jackson’s own daughter, Paris, recently said that fans should expect as much while explaining why she chose to distance herself from the film.
“The film panders to a very specific section of my dad’s fandom, that still lives in the fantasy, and they’re going to be happy with it,” Paris said in an Instagram post back in September. “It’s Hollywood. It’s fantasy land. It’s not real… The narrative is being controlled. There’s a lot of inaccuracies, and just full-blown lies.”
Earlier this year, Michael reportedly underwent significant rewrites and reshoots to its third act due to a previously overlooked agreement signed by the Jackson family, which promised that no film about the musician would include the story of Jordan Chandler, the 13-year-old who made molestation allegations against Jackson in 1993. Matt Belloni of Puck News previously reported that the original plan for the film’s third act was to focus on the 1993 investigation and Chandler’s statements, portraying Jackson as naïve in the face of opportunistic individuals with allegedly unfounded claims. Belloni further reported that the film “directly engages with the allegations against Jackson” and “wants very much to convince you Michael is innocent.”
