Leaving Neverland Director Slams New Michael Jackson Biopic

The director of the Michael Jackson documentary Leaving Neverland has opened up about the new biopic about the singer.

Filmmaker Dan Reed got the whole world talking in 2019 with his two-part doc, which explored the multiple allegations of child sexual abuse made against the Thriller musician in his lifetime.

During a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Reed was asked about the new movie Michael, which has already been panned by critics, not least because it ends in the late 1980s, meaning the accusations levelled at Jackson are never addressed in the movie.

The Emmy winner also spoke about Michael director Antoine Fuqua’s assertion to the New Yorker that “sometimes people do some nasty things for some money” when asked for his own take on the allegations.

“For Antoine Fuqua to accuse people of gold digging is kind of ironic,” Reed responded. “It seems to me all the people involved in this movie are just making bank.”

He continued: “How can you tell an authentic story about Michael Jackson without ever mentioning the fact that he was seriously accused of being a child molester? I just don’t really see it.

“If anyone’s making money, it’s Michael Jackson’s estate and the people who worked on this biographical picture. Wade [Robson] and James [Safechuck], the protagonists of Leaving Neverland, have never made a cent from their accusations. People don’t seem to understand: If you bring a lawsuit, you don’t get any money until you win in court. And when you win in court, that means you’ve proved your case, right?”

Leaving Neverland premiered on the US broadcaster HBO, before a shortened version aired on Channel 4 on this side of the Atlantic.

Years after Leaving Neverland’s debut, the Jackson estate raised a legal complaint with HBO over a previous contract agreement relating to a Michael Jackson concert broadcast from the early 1990s, which included a “non-disparagement clause”.

As a result, the film was removed from HBO’s catalogue, and is currently not available to watch anywhere, with Reed noting that they still hold the licence for his project until 2029.

Reed later worked on a follow-up, Leaving Neverland II, which was made without HBO’s involvement, also released to Channel 4 in the UK, while overseas, it premiered on YouTube.