Michael Jackson Biopic Sparks 116% Surge in Streaming, 'Thriller' Re-Enters Billboard Top 10
May 4, 2026
The Michael biopic released in late April 2026 sparked a robust surge in streaming for Michael Jackson’s solo catalog in the United States, with 47.9 million on-demand streams from April 24 to April 26, a 116% jump versus the prior weekend.
The revival extended beyond Michael's solo work, as the Jackson 5 catalog surged globally by 163% in the week ending April 30, reaching 29 million streams, while The Jacksons’ broader catalog saw substantial gains.
The Jackson 5 catalog rose to 3.4 million streams in the April 24–26 window (up 89% from the prior weekend), and The Jacksons accumulated 1.8 million streams (up 104%).
Other popular tracks such as Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough, Smooth Criminal and They Don’t Care About Us entered Spotify’s top 100 as part of the boost.
A sequel to the film has been green-lit, though details about the next installment have not yet been announced.
Album-level performance mirrored the song surge, with Thriller re-entering the Billboard 200 top 10 and related releases like Michael: Songs from the Motion Picture and Number Ones driving concurrent sales and streaming activity.
In the week after the film’s release, Jackson ranked as Spotify’s seventh most-streamed artist globally and surpassed 81 million monthly listeners, the highest figure of his career.
Specific tracks fueled the rise, including Billie Jean near No. 3 on the Daily Spotify Global Chart with about 4 million daily streams, and Beat It near No. 5, while both jumped in the weekly rankings (Billie Jean up 60 spots to No. 5; Beat It up 117 spots to No. 15).
Top contributing songs by volume included Billie Jean (~4 million), Beat It (~2.9 million), Rock With You (~2.4 million), and Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough (~2.3 million).
The film, starring Jaafar Jackson, chronicles Michael’s rise from 1966 to 1988, and its strong domestic ($97 million) and worldwide ($218.8 million) box office helped drive renewed interest in his catalog.
Summary based on 2 sources
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Sources

InMusic • May 4, 2026
Michael Jackson’s Catalog Explodes on Spotify After Michael Biopic Premiere
Music Mundial • May 2, 2026
Michael Jackson’s streaming revival: The newly released movie brings new attention to major hits