Michael Jackson’s biopic, Michael, has dethroned Bohemian Rhapsody to become the highest-grossing music biopic of all time, crossing $911.9 million worldwide as the Jaafar Jackson-starring film continues its global rollout.

Directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by John Logan, the Lionsgate and Universal co-production has surpassed Bohemian Rhapsody‘s total gross with $358.6 million at the domestic box office and $553.3 million internationally — with Universal generating $540.5 million of the international total after acquiring foreign theatrical and ancillary rights. The film arrives in Japan today, a territory that could push Michael past $1 billion worldwide, which would make it only the second film to cross that threshold at the 2026 global box office after Universal’s Super Mario Galaxy Movie.

By comparison, the Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody — which won four Oscars including Best Film Editing and earned Rami Malek a Best Actor win — grossed $216.6 million domestically and $694.3 million internationally for a $910.9 million global total. Both films were produced by Graham King, meaning King has now broken his own all-time box office record for music biopics.

The film has set a string of records in addition to its overall gross — among them the largest global opening weekend ever for a music biopic, the highest-grossing domestic biopic of all time, and the most successful biopic ever in France, surpassing La Vie en Rose. Forty international markets surpassed Bohemian Rhapsody‘s lifetime gross, including Brazil, France and Mexico. It is also Lionsgate’s highest-grossing theatrical release ever worldwide.

The road to release was not without turbulence. Lionsgate was forced to undertake $50 million in reshoots after the Jackson estate identified a key issue with a plot point in the screenplay concerning one of Jackson’s accusers, who was not meant to be dramatised in the film. The film stars Jaafar Jackson — Michael Jackson’s nephew — in the title role.

Michael Jackson remains one of the most commercially successful recording artists in history. He has sold an estimated 350 million records worldwide, scored 13 No. 1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 as a solo artist — including “Billie Jean,” “Beat It” and “Black or White” — and holds the record for the best-selling album of all time with Thriller, which has sold more than 70 million copies worldwide.

Thriller spent 37 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Jackson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice — once as a member of the Jackson 5 in 1997 and once as a solo artist in 2001.

Australian indie-pop four-piece The Tullamarines have delivered one of Like A Version’s most anticipated covers of the year, taking on Fleetwood Mac‘s “The Chain” in their debut appearance at the triple j studio.

The band — Angus Purvis, Lucinda Machin, Josh and Benny — leaned into the song’s dynamics, trading harmonies across its quieter passages before spotlighting the iconic bass-driven breakdown and building into a full-blown closing jam. The arrangement stayed faithful to the spirit of the original while leaving room for the band’s own four-part vocal blend to take centre stage. They also performed their original track “Running On Empty” as part of the session.

The song choice came with some nerves attached. “We had a lot of songs that we were thinking about. The Chain came up as an option, and we were very, very scared,” vocalist Purvis admitted in an accompanying triple j interview. “And they were thinking we couldn’t do that justice.” Co-vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Machin said the band ultimately decided to “give it a go, see what happens” — describing the song’s lyrical themes and construction as “very angsty,” while Purvis remarked that “The Chain” feels like it’s been around “forever.”

For good reason. “The Chain” is drawn from Fleetwood Mac‘s Rumours (1977) — the album that spent 31 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, making it one of the longest-running chart-toppers in the chart’s history. Rumours has sold more than 40 million copies worldwide and remains one of the best-selling albums ever recorded. While “The Chain” was never released as a standalone single, it has become one of the most recognised tracks in the band’s catalogue, widely used in film, television and sport and covered extensively in the decades since.

The Tullamarines are currently on an upward trajectory in the Australian independent music scene. Their 2025 sophomore EP Safety Blanket has been nominated for Best Independent Pop Album or EP at this year’s AIR Awards, with winners to be announced at an invite-only ceremony at Adelaide Town Hall on July 30. The band spent the past 12 months building momentum through sold-out headline shows, festival appearances and achieving full triple j rotation, while supporting international acts including The Vaccines and Everything Everything.