Antoine Fuqua’s Michael took the world by storm with a mix of celebration and controversy. The movie was hammered by critics, yet audiences responded with a $97 million opening weekend. To date, the movie has amassed a billion dollars worldwide. Despite Michael‘s success, questions remained about how a popular depiction of the controversial pop singer could be burying the dark reality of his later years. Some people, like Spike Lee, defended the film because the story ended in the late ’80s before the allegations surfaced. Michael was originally going to show the 1993 FBI raid on Neverland Ranch, but the production opted to excise it completely.

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