2026's Record-Breaking Hit Officially Rejected From Major Awards Run

Glen Wilson/©Lionsgate/Courtesy Everett Collection Published Oct 20, 2026, 8:15 PM EDT Matthew Thomas is a celebrity entertainment and trending news journalist. Passionate about the media. He developed a love for storytelling that he loves to share with others through his writing. Matthew has been able to cover a variety of subjects he is very passionate about, including movies, TV shows, comics, and wrestling. Experience:Matthew brings more than a decade of experience writing about pop culture, movies, TV shows, wrestling, comic books, true crime, weather conditions, safety tips, taxes, wildlife, archaeology, music, and trending news. He is also an experienced interviewer with a strong track record of speaking with high-profile talent and subject-matter experts. He has conducted interviews with major actors, including Matt Damon, Matthew McConaughey, Bryan Cranston, Ethan Hawke, Jason Sudeikis, Jon Hamm, Alan Ritchson, Kumail Nanjiani, Rob McElhenney, Danny Trejo, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Joshua Jackson, Damon Wayans, John C. McGinley, and Julia Jones. He has also interviewed several prominent TV personalities, including Howie Mandel, Ted Lasso star Phil Dunster, Happy’s Place star Rex Linn, the cast of Stuart Saves the Universe, and acclaimed series creators Bill Lawrence and Chuck Lorre. As a versatile entertainment journalist, he has also interviewed notable musicians such as Travis Barker and Nick Jonas, as well as sports icons like Olympic gold medalist wrestler Kurt Angle and NBA champion Jayson Tatum. Additionally, Matthew has interviewed reality show contestants from hit series like Survivor, Big Brother, and The Traitors. To round out his extensive portfolio, he has interviewed subject-matter experts on taxes, public safety, and winter weather conditions. Sign in to your ScreenRant account The hit 2026 biopic Michael has just been rejected for eligibility for a major awards show. Even though the reviews for Michael were mixed, there has still been a lot of conjecture about whether the film will receive any major awards nominations. Other high-profile music biopics have garnered awards despite facing criticism from some, as Bohemian Rhapsody notably did. However, the route the team behind the Michael Jackson film hoped to take to awards success has seemingly been closed. On October 20, Variety reported that Michael had been rejected for eligibility in key Golden Globes categories. After Lionsgate submitted the biopic for consideration in the comedy or musical category, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association denied that request. That means that the film will be considered in the drama categories where they exist and the general categories where there are no genre divides. As Variety noted, Lionsgate has until October 31 to appeal the ruling, which would result in the HFPA evaluating the motion. The outlet noted that Lionsgate had declined to comment on the news and their sources shared that the studio is unlikely to appeal the ruling. On the Golden Globes website, they outline the rules that a film must meet to be considered in the Musical or Comedy category. Check out those rules below: Motion pictures shall be entered in the category that best matches the overall intent, tone, and content of the motion picture. Therefore, a motion picture that is primarily intended to have a serious or dramatic tone but contains comedic overtones or elements shall be entered as a drama as opposed to a comedy. Likewise, a motion picture that is primarily intended to have a comedic or satirical tone but contains dramatic overtones or elements shall be entered as a comedy as opposed to a drama. A musical can be a comedy or a drama in which songs are used in addition to spoken dialogue to further the plot. More to come... Release Date April 24, 2026 Runtime 130 minutes Director Antoine Fuqua Cast Jaafar Jackson Michael Jackson Writers John Logan Producers Graham King, John Branca, John McClain