• The Milestone: Lionsgate’s highly anticipated film MICHAEL has officially become the highest-grossing musical biopic of all time across the African continent.
• The Markets: The record-shattering theatrical run is anchored by dominant performances in major territories, including South Africa ($3.57M), Nigeria ($488K), and Kenya ($376K).
• The Legacy: More than sixteen years after his passing, the film’s historic box office run serves as a massive cultural event, proving the timeless global reach of the King of Pop.

The success of MICHAEL just keeps on keeping on. The latest accomplishment? The film has expanded its record-shattering theatrical run, quietly pulling off an even more historic box office phenomenon across the African continent, claiming the number one spot across multiple major territories. This follows the movie officially securing its place as the highest-grossing musical biopic of all time worldwide last week.

Let’s look a little further into the numbers.

RELATED: ‘MICHAEL’ Blasts Past ‘Oppenheimer’ in Japan to Close in on the $1 Billion Mark

The Box Office Breakdown

The film has drawn massive theatrical crowd numbers to claim the top spot in several distinct African countries, including:

• South Africa: $3,572,412
• Nigeria: $488,710
• Kenya: $376,300

On paper, these numbers might seem small compared to the massive weekends seen in Western markets, but box office tracking insiders view this as a major triumph. Launching a film in these territories means working around unique market conditions, including a much smaller pool of theater locations, fewer overall screens, and far lower ticket prices than what you find in the US or Europe.

#MichaelMovie is officially the HIGHEST GROSSING MUSICAL BIOPIC in South Africa and Globally! See it in cinemas now pic.twitter.com/l87RvMHfhk

— Universal Pictures South Africa (@UniversalPicsZA) June 19, 2026

The Cultural Impact

Even though South Africa serves as the largest movie market on the continent, its total theater seating is still just a drop in the bucket compared to the massive capacity found in the US or UK. Meanwhile, despite boasting one of the biggest populations in the world, Nigeria’s modern cinema footprint is mostly limited to a handful of major cities.

What’s Next?

Fans can now purchase or rent MICHAEL through major premium video-on-demand platforms, including digital storefronts such as Prime Video, Apple TV and Fandango at Home. The digital release includes purchase options as well as rental access for viewers who want to revisit the story of the King of Pop from home. 

From there, Lionsgate will follow up the streaming debut with a premium physical rollout on July 14 (according to the Blu Ray website), introducing an array of Collector’s Edition 4K UHD Steelbooks at retail giants like Walmart and Amazon.

MICHAEL is now confirmed to be hitting the $1 billion mark.

Featured Photo: Lionsgate

RELATED: Lionsgate Gives a Production Update on ‘Michael 2’