‘Michael’ Cast and Filmmakers to Receive Gotham Musical Tribute

The team behind Michael will receive the Gotham Musical Tribute at the 36th annual Gotham Film Awards, adding another high-profile honor to the biographical film’s awards-season run. The ceremony is scheduled for November 30 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.

The tribute recognizes the film’s central creative team

Director Antoine Fuqua, producer Graham King and actors Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo and Nia Long are among those named for the presentation. Jackson plays Michael Jackson, while the film also features Laura Harrier, Juliano Krue Valdi and Miles Teller. John Logan wrote the screenplay.

The Gotham Film & Media Institute said the tribute recognizes the performers and filmmakers who brought Jackson’s life and music to the screen. Executive director Jeffrey Sharp emphasized the production’s effort to capture the person behind the public legacy, framing the honor around both the musical achievement and the film’s character work.

A box-office milestone shapes the honor

The institute says Michael has earned $1.029 billion worldwide, making it the first biographical film to cross the $1 billion mark and the highest-grossing title in Lionsgate’s history. The film premiered in Berlin in April before opening later that month in the United Kingdom and the United States. A sequel is now in development.

The movie follows Jackson’s journey from his early work with the Jackson Five through his emergence as a solo performer, combining offstage moments with recreations of major performances. The Gotham honor arrives as the project’s commercial scale continues to shape its position in the 2026 awards conversation.

This is only the second year for the Gotham Musical Tribute. The award was introduced with Song Sung Blue, whose recipients included Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson. The 2026 ceremony will also recognize Danny Boyle with the Director Tribute, La Bola Negra with the Vanguard Tribute and LAIKA with the Anniversary Tribute. Nominations for the wider Gotham Film Awards are due on October 27.