Michael Jackson’s Controversial Show Takes Over Streaming as Michael Craze Intensifies

Netflix has just dropped yet another Michael Jackson documentary — and predictably, it’s causing a fair bit of noise. 'Michael Jackson: The Verdict' is suddenly dominating the streaming charts, all while the new biopic 'Michael' continues to rake in an eye-watering amount of cash at cinemas worldwide. It’s a case of controversy meeting commercial juggernaut, and both arms of the Michael Jackson media machine are humming.

'The Verdict' Takes the Crown on Netflix

If you spotted 'Michael Jackson: The Verdict' floating around the Netflix homepage, you weren’t the only one. According to FlixPatrol’s latest numbers (as of 7 June 2026), it’s currently sitting pretty in the top slot for streamed shows — and it only appeared on the service on 6 May.

Netflix’s top ten also looks like this right now, for anyone keeping track of that particular league table:

• Michael Jackson: The Verdict
• The Witness
• Tina Fey’s The Four Seasons
• Alfred Molina’s The Boroughs
• Nemesis
• Taylor Sheridan’s Lawmen: Bass Reeves

'The Verdict' is a three-parter that takes a deep dive into Michael Jackson’s infamous 2005 criminal trial in Santa Maria, California, where he faced several allegations of child molestation. The result, in case your memory’s rusty: Jackson was acquitted on all counts. No cameras were allowed in the courtroom, so director Nick Green takes the 'let’s talk to everyone who was actually there' approach, gathering interviews from prosecution and defence lawyers, jurors, old mates of Jackson’s, and a handful of journalists who covered the story back in the day.

Audience Scores: Not Thrilled, To Put It Mildly

For a documentary attracting this much attention, you’d expect the audience reaction to be at least a bit warmer. Not the case. Critics have given it a pass at 75% on Rotten Tomatoes, but if you look at what normal viewers think, it’s a bloodbath: a miserable 7% user score. IMDb isn’t much kinder — more than four thousand viewers have weighed in, dragging it down to just 4.5 out of 10. Safe to say: people are not happy. There’s a fair bit of criticism flying about the show’s choices and direction, but you probably saw that one coming with a subject as divisive as Michael Jackson.

'Michael' — The Biopic That Just Won’t Stop Earning

And then there’s the feature film, 'Michael', which is frankly printing money at this point. This thing cost a reported $155 million to make and has already hoovered up $888 million globally. That makes it the second highest-grossing musical biopic ever — only 'Bohemian Rhapsody' (about Freddie Mercury, in case you’re wondering how short the memory in Hollywood runs) has surpassed it, with $911 million at the worldwide box office.

Directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by John Logan, the film stars Jaafar Jackson — yes, he’s related — as The King of Pop himself. On Rotten Tomatoes, viewers are singing its praises (97% user rating), while critics have been considerably frostier, sitting at 39%. If you missed it in cinemas, you’ll be able to stream 'Michael' from 9 June 2026 on platforms like Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV.

If you’re into big-name music documentaries, slightly contentious biopics, or just curious about why the same story can simultaneously spark outrage and blockbuster profits, this particular week in streaming is probably as good as it gets.