“Michael” is nearing another major box office milestone. The musical biopic about Michael Jackson has generated $788 million globally and will soon eclipse the $800 million mark.

Over the weekend, “Michael” added $28.5 million overseas in another strong showing. The crowd-pleaser, distributed by Universal internationally and Lionsgate domestically, has grossed $468 million overseas and $319 million domestically to date. With one significant market — Japan — yet to open, “Michael” should eventually surpass 2018’s sensation “Bohemian Rhapsody” ($911 million) to stand as the highest-grossing musical biopic of all time.

Disney’s comedy sequel “The Devil Wears Prada 2” also surpassed a notable box office benchmark with more than $600 million worldwide. Now in its fourth weekend of release, the fashion-set film collected $21 million overseas. “The Devil Wears Prada 2” has been big in North America with nearly $200 million to date, but it’s been especially popular at the international box office with $408 million.

This weekend’s major release was Disney’s “Star Wars” spinoff “The Mandalorian and Grogu,” which opened to $64 million from 51 territories. Top markets were the United Kingdom with $7.1 million, Germany with $6.5 million, China with $5.3 million and Japan with $4.9 million. The big-budget tentpole has been a bigger draw in North America with $82 million over the weekend and an estimated $102 million through Memorial Day on Monday. That brings the global total to $145 million over the three days and $165 million over the four-day frame.

Those ticket sales are roughly even with the studio’s last spinoff attempt, 2018’s “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” which ended in disaster. That movie opened to $65 million overseas as well as $84 million domestically (and $103 million through the four-day Memorial Day holiday), not adjusted for inflation. With lackluster reviews and tepid word-of-mouth, it became the first “Star Wars” movie ever to lose money in its theatrical run, tapping out with $392 million globally against a massive budget of nearly $300 million. “The Mandalorian and Grogu,” meanwhile, cost $165 million to produce (that’s on the leaner side for Disney) and seems to have far better word-of-mouth from critics and audiences. The film’s second weekend at the box office will better indicate whether “The Mandalorian and Grogu” is just appealing to fans of the series, or if it’ll be able to stick around in theaters.

Jon Favreau directed “The Mandalorian and Grogu,” a continuation of the Disney+ series “The Mandalorian,” which follows Pedro Pascal’s Din Djarin and his adorable green sidekick as they navigate a galaxy that’s recovering from the fall of the evil Empire. It’s an important test for Disney as the first “Star Wars” movie in seven years — since 2019’s billion-dollar tentpole “The Rise of Skywalker.” There’s been pressure to prove the space opera series has cinematic potential because Disney+ became the go-to destination for all things set in a galaxy far, far away, with shows ranging from “The Book of Boba Fett” and “Ahsoka” to “Andor.” The franchise will return to the big screen with next summer’s “Star Wars: Starfighter,” an original adventure directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling.

Maritime tracking transmissions collapsed near the UAE’s main oil hub, rattling Persian Gulf shipping hours before President Donald Trump announced progress was made on a bilateral peace deal with Iran, according to an AI maritime firm. 

Maritime intelligence firm Windward AI first detected the blackout in Automatic Identification System (AIS) transmissions near Fujairah, suggesting heightened electronic warfare, jamming, deliberate AIS shutdowns and intense cyber interference near the key UAE oil port.

“Fujairah goes dark: AIS transmissions collapse after Iran’s PGSA announcement,” Windward warned in a post shared on X.

“Vessels are still in the area. They are loading less, and a meaningful number have gone dark,” the firm said.

GULF SHIPPING OPERATIONS GRIND TO HALT NEAR IRAN, US QUIETLY PREPARES FOR POSSIBLE STRIKE: ‘HEIGHTENED RISK’

As Trump announced that an Iran deal was “largely negotiated” and would see a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, Fujairah went on to move 1.35 million barrels of crude Sunday aboard a single tanker bound for South Korea.

“Today, May 24, the port moved 1.35 million barrels, a single VLCC, destined for South Korea,” Windward said before reporting a tense, ongoing “ceasefire posture” and blockade footprint quickly being set into place.

“One cargo doesn’t mark a return to baseline, but it’s the first signal of flow resuming out of Fujairah since the announcement,” Windward said.

Ahead of the barrel transfer, Trump had stated that Washington and Tehran had “largely finalized” a memorandum of understanding for a peace agreement.  He posted an AI-generated image depicting exploding IRGC fast boats in the strait.

TRUMP SAYS IRAN DEAL ‘LARGELY NEGOTIATED’ AS 84-DAY WAR NEARS POSSIBLE END

Iran responded directly by continuing to declare the strategic maritime chokepoint stays under Tehran’s absolute control.

“We reaffirm that the Strait of Hormuz will remain under full Iranian administration and sovereignty, even in the event of reaching any future agreement,” Iran’s official military spokesperson, Ibrahim Al-Fiqar, said in a statement shared on X.

“The Islamic Republic emphasizes that the authorities to determine transit routes, timing, and issuance of maritime licenses are an absolute sovereign right exclusively in the hands of Tehran.”

The tanker blackout, crude transfer activity and movement toward a U.S.-Iran deal accelerated following the launch of Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority on May 20.

Overseen by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy, the PGSA functions as a sovereign regulator by requiring ships to submit vessel, cargo, insurance and crew details — along with mandatory payments — for “safe passage” through the strait.

Regional analysts told Fox News Digital that, ahead of deal progression, Iran’s territorial claims had even been stretching beyond its own waters into areas tied to Oman and the UAE.

US EYES IRAN FAST BOATS WITH ‘KILL’ TACTICS TESTED IN VENEZUELA DRUG-BOAT STRIKES

Alex Vatanka, director of the Iran Program at the Middle East Institute, told Fox News Digital that enforcement “relies on the IRGC Navy’s asymmetric playbook.”

“This includes fast boats, drones, radar tracking, coastal missiles and selective intimidation rather than constant physical interdiction,” Vatanka said.

“Tehran wants Gulf states and major importers to gradually accept Iranian oversight of Hormuz as a new geopolitical reality,” he added.

While nuclear issues are dominating the current negotiations amid reports of a 60-day ceasefire, the PGSA has quickly emerged as an economic leverage tool threatening global oil and shipping markets.

“Now Hormuz is Iran’s main non-nuclear leverage tool,” Vatanka said as the PGSA he claimed gives Tehran a “mechanism to pressure rivals, favor allies and normalize IRGC oversight of one of the world’s most critical energy routes.”

According to Vatanka, the system was functioning as a wartime extortion mechanism.

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“Ships submit cargo and crew data for approval, while reports point to quiet ‘facilitation payments,’ preferential treatment for friendly states and uncertainty for everyone else,” Vatanka warned.

“Iran keeps the penalties deliberately vague. Noncompliant ships risk delays, harassment, drone surveillance, IRGC interception or denial of safe passage — enough pressure to encourage compliance without outright closing the strait.”

QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden vehicle near a railway track as a passenger train passed through the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta on Sunday, killing at least 19 people and wounding over 70 others, officials said.

The force of the explosion caused two of the train cars to overturn and catch fire, sending thick black smoke into the air, according to footage shared online.

The attack happened in an area where security forces are usually stationed, badly damaging several nearby buildings and smashing more than a dozen vehicles parked along the road, according to witnesses and images circulating on social media.

Doctors at local hospitals said they had received the wounded, with 20 in critical condition. Three security officials told The Associated Press the bodies were transported to hospitals following the attack. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to be able to speak to the media.

The outlawed Baloch Liberation Army, or BLA, which demands independence from Pakistan’s central government, has claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement sent to reporters. The militant group said it targeted a train carrying security personnel.

Quetta is the capital of insurgency-hit Balochistan province. The oil- and mineral-rich region has long been the scene of a low-level insurgency. The insurgents have frequently targeted security forces, government installations and civilians in the province and elsewhere in the country.

“We strongly condemn the targeting of innocent civilians and are deeply saddened by the loss of precious human lives. Terrorist elements deserve no leniency,” said Shahid Rind, Balochistan provincial government spokesman.

He said following the explosion, a medical emergency was declared at hospitals in Quetta, and an investigation has been launched.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the attack, calling it a “cowardly act of terrorism” in a post on X and offering condolences to the families of the victims.

Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti strongly condemned the attack in Quetta, saying the militants targeted “innocent civilians, including women and children,” vowing to “hunt (them down)” in a post on X.

Bugti and the federal government in Islamabad often use the phrase “Fitna al-Hindustan” to refer to the BLA, which they allege is backed by India. New Delhi denies the allegation.

Pakistan and India have long had strained relations and have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir, which is claimed by both in its entirety.

Although Pakistani authorities say they have quelled the insurgency, violence in Baluchistan has persisted.

At least 26 people, including soldiers, were killed in 2024 when a suicide bomber attacked a train station in Balochistan.