Michael Jackson Biopic’s Record-Breaking Debut Unseats 2026’s Biggest Box Office Hit On U.S. Chart

✓ Correct! Quincy Jones — Michael met him on the set of The Wiz (1978), and Jones went on to produce the trio of albums that defined Michael’s solo career: Off the Wall (1979), Thriller (1982) and Bad (1987). Thriller has sold more than 70 million copies worldwide. George Martin produced The Beatles. Berry Gordy ran Motown. Rod Temperton wrote the title track but didn’t produce.

✗ Off the beat. The answer is Quincy Jones. George Martin was The Beatles’ producer. Berry Gordy founded Motown and signed the Jackson 5 but wasn’t behind the boards on Thriller. Rod Temperton wrote the title track “Thriller” (plus “Rock with You” and “Off the Wall”) but it was Quincy Jones who produced all three of Michael’s adult-era masterpieces.

✓ Correct! Billie Jean. After performing Jackson 5 hits with his brothers, Michael took the stage alone for a lip-synced “Billie Jean” and glided backwards across it — a move he’d been refining from street dancers and mime technique. Motown 25 became one of the most-watched TV specials of the 80s and cemented Michael as the biggest solo star on the planet.

✗ Off the beat. The answer is Billie Jean. “Rock with You” and “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” are from Off the Wall. “Beat It” is on Thriller but wasn’t the Motown 25 solo number. It was “Billie Jean” — mime-walked, glove-flashed, and watched by an estimated 47 million Americans live.

✓ Correct! “I Want You Back” — released October 1969, written by The Corporation (Berry Gordy and his in-house team) and topping the Hot 100 by January 1970. The Jackson 5 then did something no act had done before: their next three singles (“ABC,” “The Love You Save,” “I’ll Be There”) also all hit #1, giving them four straight chart-toppers to start their career.

✗ Off the beat. The answer is “I Want You Back.” “ABC,” “The Love You Save,” and “I’ll Be There” were the group’s next three singles — each also hit #1, making them the first act ever to see their first four Motown releases top the Hot 100. But “I Want You Back,” from October 1969, was the one that broke them.

✓ Correct! Eddie Van Halen — Van Halen were touring when Quincy Jones phoned. Eddie dropped by Westlake Studios, cut two takes for free (and, yes, allegedly a case of beer), and was so uncredited on the first pressings that fans didn’t realise it was him. The solo helped “Beat It” become a smash on MTV and rock radio at a time when black artists rarely crossed that line.

✗ Off the beat. The answer is Eddie Van Halen. Slash played on Michael’s later song “Black or White.” Jimmy Page is Led Zeppelin. Prince was famously offered the duet on “Bad” but turned it down. Eddie Van Halen’s “Beat It” solo — recorded in a single afternoon, uncredited, supposedly paid in beer — is one of the most famous guitar solos in pop history.

✓ Correct! Lionel Richie — the two wrote the song in about a week, with Quincy Jones producing. Harry Belafonte had the original idea, Ken Kragen organised the session, and a handwritten studio sign told arriving superstars to “Check your egos at the door.” It sold over 20 million copies and won four Grammys including Record and Song of the Year.

✗ Off the beat. The answer is Lionel Richie. Stevie Wonder sang on the record and helped in the studio but didn’t co-write it. Paul McCartney collaborated with Michael on “The Girl Is Mine” and “Say Say Say,” not this one. Smokey Robinson wrote at Motown. Richie and Jackson wrote “We Are the World” together in about a week, with Quincy Jones producing.

✓ Correct! John Landis — Michael had loved Landis’ 1981 horror-comedy An American Werewolf in London and specifically asked him to direct. Special-effects maestro Rick Baker handled the werewolf/zombie makeup, Vincent Price delivered the iconic rap at the end, and the making-of documentary became one of the best-selling VHS tapes ever. Scorsese later directed “Bad.” Bob Giraldi directed “Beat It.”

✗ Off the beat. The answer is John Landis — fresh off 1981’s An American Werewolf in London, which is why Michael picked him. Scorsese would direct the “Bad” video four years later. De Palma didn’t do a MJ video. Bob Giraldi directed “Beat It.” Landis also made the 35-minute making-of special that turned into a home-video sensation.

✓ Correct! Five #1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 — a first for any album. The run: “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” (with Siedah Garrett), “Bad,” “The Way You Make Me Feel,” “Man in the Mirror,” and “Dirty Diana.” Bad also launched Michael’s first world tour as a solo artist and featured the Martin Scorsese-directed title-track video opposite a young Wesley Snipes.

✗ Off the beat. The answer is five #1 singles on the Hot 100. Diamond certification wasn’t created until 1999. The first album to debut at #1 was Elton John’s Captain Fantastic (1975). Simultaneous CD/vinyl releases weren’t a Bad-specific milestone. Bad’s five chart-toppers — from “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” through “Dirty Diana” — was the record no album had ever hit before.

✓ Correct! Elizabeth Taylor — a close friend of Michael’s since the 80s — called him “the true king of pop, rock and soul” while presenting the Soul Train Heritage Award in March 1989. He embraced the moniker, eventually insisting media outlets use it when referring to him. Diana Ross had mentored him at Motown. Oprah did the famous 1993 Neverland interview. Whitney Houston was a peer and collaborator on USA for Africa.

✗ Off the beat. The answer is Elizabeth Taylor — at the Soul Train Heritage Award in March 1989, she hailed him as “the true king of pop, rock and soul.” Diana Ross was his Motown mentor. Oprah Winfrey later did the landmark 1993 living-room interview at Neverland. Whitney Houston sang on “We Are the World” but didn’t coin the nickname. Taylor and Michael were genuinely close friends.