Michael (2026) [4K Ultra HD]

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Cast: Jaafar Jackson, Nia Long, Colman Domingo

Release Date: July 14, 2026

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Film Rating: 6/10
Disc Rating: 8.5/10

Synopsis:

MICHAEL is the cinematic portrayal of the life and legacy of one of the most influential artists the world has ever known. The film tells the story of Michael Jackson’s life beyond the music, tracing his journey from the discovery of his extraordinary talent as the lead of The Jackson 5, to the visionary artist whose creative ambition fueled a relentless pursuit to become the biggest entertainer in the world. Highlighting both his life off-stage and some of the most iconic performances from his early solo career, the film gives audiences a front-row seat to Michael Jackson as never before. This is where his story begins.

‘Michael’ invites viewers to a look at the early days of legendary pop singer Michael Jackson, chronicling his childhood days with the Jackson 5 and his breakthrough as a solo artist. It explores the success, struggles and hurdles the king of pop tackled from an abusive childhood where he served as the star frontman of his family group, and follows his progression into adulthood where he finally decides to explore a solo career and before long takes off in a manner few could have truly expected, yet all the while still forced to juggle his new direction with a family and more specifically father that isn’t about to let his golden moneymaker go without a fight.

Directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, The Equalizer) from a screenplay written by John Logan (Skyfall), Fuqua does a solid job at the helm of ‘Michael’ guiding along the biopic with heart, style and a clear passion for both the man and his music. The film’s cast includes Jaafar Jackson (in his acting debut), Nia Long (Missing), Juliano Valdi (TV’s 9-1-1), KeiLyn Durrel Jones (TV’s Succession), Laura Harrier (Spider-Man: Homecoming), with Miles Teller (Top Gun: Maverick) and Colman Domingo (Disclosure Day), along with many more and most offer capable and fitting performances in each of their roles, although Jaafar Jackson tends to repeatedly steal the show with his remarkable and on-point portrayal of the king of pop.

‘Michael’ is an enjoyable, often emotionally moving and visually spectacular look at the early days of Michael Jackson’s life and career as he struggles to get away from an abusive father who has no intention of letting his biggest earner step away and fully delve into a solo career, to debut albums that take the world by storm and quickly transform him into a cultural icon for the ages. What the biopic does focus on and put its effort into works pretty well altogether and Jaafar Jackson is impeccable as Michael, offering a moving performance that will repeatedly put a smile on your face and at times even make you think it is Michael.

The movie does feel like it’s a bit too all over the place though at times and sugarcoats a few elements that feel like they deserved more attention, although as a film that showcases his talents, certain aspects of his life and career and always keeps the audience interested it’s to be commended, and the massive box office success it enjoyed was clearly a result of just that. The folks who are more interested in the basics such as his rise to legendary status and his evolving career, along with his unparalleled talents both in vocals and dance will surely have a blast with this one and even I must admit I thoroughly enjoyed what it has to offer even with some curious choices and absent elements. In many areas it does a terrific job of bringing the legend back to life, or certainly as close as it comes.

Overall, ‘Michael’ is a beautifully shot and well-intentioned look at the iconic star that benefits from the solid guidance of director Antoine Fuqua and a truly impressive and dazzling performance from Jaafar Jackson who is downright magical in the titular role, but it fails to offer any definitive insight into many subjects and instead feels more like a cut together highlight reel at times than an in depth exploration of the man. While it may not be perfect and it feels like a lot of potentially important subject matter was disregarded or lightened up for the film, ‘Michael’ is definitely recommended for any fans of Michael Jackson and those intrigued by his remarkable life and career who should each find plenty of love or at least appreciate within. If you didn’t have the chance to catch it in theaters during its impressive run but would love to give it a whirl, it should certainly be worth a couple hours and the cost of a rental.

VIDEO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Michael’ features a full 2160p Ultra High Definition presentation with Dolby Vision and HDR-10, presented in its original 1.85:1 Aspect Ratio. The video presentation looks outstanding as a whole and delivers a sharp, clean and immaculately detailed presentation from start to finish that’s absent of any noticeable issues to be found throughout. Detail is marvelous on character specifics, surroundings and the recreation of the concert performances along with more and the Dolby Vision HDR helps enhance much of it including attire, lights and even the darker tidbits, while black levels remain sufficiently deep, rich and problem free. Overall, this is a wonderful Ultra High Definition presentation that dazzles at every turn and should easily excite viewers.

AUDIO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release features a Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 channel compatible) soundtrack. Please note that this review pertains solely to the Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio presentation. This multichannel soundtrack sounds great and offers a clean, sharp and crisp audio presentation throughout that repeatedly immerses you in the story. It takes advantage of all seven available channels regularly in order to send music, crowd noise and plenty more booming throughout the various speakers when appropriate and never allowing any dialogue or other audio elements that may be occurring simultaneously to become negatively affected along the way. Overall, this is a spectacular Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible) soundtrack that repeatedly adds some additional and noteworthy fun and immersion to the viewing experience.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Michael’ features a handful of entertaining extras that take you behind the making of the movie. Included on the release is ‘Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough: The Making of Michael’ (running approximately 60 minutes in length), ‘Home Is Where His Heart Is: Behind the Gates of Hayvenhurst’ (running approximately 5 minutes), plus a collection of ‘In the Mirror: Becoming Michael & Joe Time-lapses’ (approximately 4 minutes altogether). Also included is a ‘First Look’ (2 minutes), along with ‘Becoming Michael’ (2 minutes), ‘Before the Big Screen’ (2 minutes), ‘On the Set of Michael’ (2 minutes) and ‘3 Trailers’ for the movie (approximately 5 minutes combined).

*Please note that the above images are taken from the Blu-Ray disc included in the 4K UHD Combo Pack and resized. They do not represent the quality of the 4K Ultra HD disc itself and will additionally suffer quality loss as a result of .jpg compression. Larger versions of each image can be viewed by clicking on the image. All images and content included on the 4K UHD & Blu-Ray release are the property of their respective owners.

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Film Rating: 6/10
Disc Rating: 8.5/10

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‘Michael’ is Now Available to Own on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD & Digital from Lionsgate

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You can purchase ‘Michael’ on 4K UHD at Amazon HERE!

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