Antoine Fuqua’s Michael continues its remarkable run in Japan, setting yet another major milestone at the box office.
Just 41 days after its June 12 release, the film has grossed ¥6,633,334,590 (approximately $41 million USD) and welcomed 4,179,224 moviegoers, making it the highest-grossing film ever released solely by a Japanese independent distributor. The record belongs to distributor Kino Films, whose success with Michael has surpassed every previous independently distributed title in the country’s history.
The film opened in 390 cinemas across Japan, earning more than ¥1.09 billion during its opening weekend. It also became the biggest opening weekend for a live-action foreign film released in Japan in 2026, topping the Japanese box office for three consecutive weeks before remaining in the Top 3 throughout its sixth week.
The Japanese milestone comes as Michael continues rewriting the record books worldwide. The biopic has now grossed over $1.01 billion globally, becoming the highest-grossing music biopic and the highest-grossing biographical film in history, overtaking both Bohemian Rhapsody and Oppenheimer.
With Japan continuing to embrace the film in large numbers, Michael shows no signs of slowing down, adding another historic achievement to its ever-growing list of box office records.
