Leaving Neverland

About

Leaving Neverland is a 2019 documentary film that details the accusations of sexual misconduct against late recording artist Michael Jackson. The film follows the accusations made by Wade Robson and Jimmy Safechuck, who have accused Jackson sexually abusing them when they were children.

History

On January 24th, 2019, Deadline reported that Park City Police was on high alert, expecting mass demonstrations for the premiere of Leaving Neverland, following "direct threats against" the film's director Dan Reed.^[1] According to a report, a source within law enforcement said, "Tensions are higher for this movie than anything I’ve ever seen at Sundance before. No one is going to be prevented from exercising their Constitutional rights, but we are not going to allow this to get out of hand, in any way."

On January 25th, 2019, the film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.^[2] For the initial screening, a heavy police presence, "three-times the usual security of a typical screening," patrolled the Egyptian theater. At the premiere, Sundance Film Festival Director John Cooper introduced the screening by letting the audience know that there would be "healthcare professionals in the lobby," which were being made available to anyone distressed by the material within the film. On the day of the screening, Los Angeles Times reporter Amy Kaufman tweeted, ^[3] "No protesters spotted at the premiere of Leaving Neverland. And this is the police presence." The tweet included a picture of the police presence at the theater (shown below).

Reception

Leaving Neverland premiered to positive reviews. Based on the nine reviews published after the Sundance premiere, it received a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. ^[4]

Film critic Adam B. Vary tweeted, "A deeply emotional Wade Robson and James Safechuck receive a standing ovation after the screening of LEAVING NEVERLAND. There will be a lot to say later, but I can say this: This is a thorough, devastating, deeply credible piece of filmmaking." The tweet^[5] received more than 30 retweets and 90 likes (shown below, left).

That day, reporter Amy Kaufman tweeted^[6] a series of allegations made within the film against Jackson by Robson and Safechuck (shown below, center). She tweeted at the beginning of the thread, "There were so many things about #LeavingNeverland that were shocking. These are some of the moments that stuck with me -- and warning, these details are graphic."

Online, fans of Jackson's music attempted to pain the victims' testimonies as false, stating that there was no proof to their allegations and that they have in the past recounted their testimony. Twitter^[7] user @JrPyburn tweeted, "Ppl claim Michael Jackson paid 200M silence victim's funny they can't show the receipts CAUSE NONE EXIST. NO PROOF
F.B.I. gave the files publicly NOTHING. NOTHING. NOTHING Incriminating about MJ was found the DEA Tom Sneddon got outed about planting false."

Jackson Family Response

In a statement, the Jackson family disputed the allegations made within the film, stating that he is "100% innocent of these false allegations." They wrote:^[8]

People have always loved to go after Michael. He was an easy target because he was unique. But Michael was subjected to a thorough investigation which included a surprise raid of Neverland and other properties as well as a jury trial where Michael was found to be COMPLETELY INNOCENT. There has never been one piece of proof of anything. Yet the media is eager to believe these lies.

Michael always turned the other cheek, and we have always turned the other cheek when people have gone after members of our family – that is the Jackson way. But we can’t just stand by while this public lynching goes on, and the vulture tweeters and others who never met Michael go after him. Michael is not here to defend himself, otherwise these allegations would not have been made.

On January 26th, 2019, Jackson's nephew Taj Jackson tweeted,^[9] "My family and I have known Wade and his family since he came to America. Don’t tell me a 4 hour one sided hit job that you watched is more reputable than people who actually knew him and saw his interactions. This is all about money and the desperate need to be relevant again." Within 24 hours, the tweet received more than 1,100 retweets and 2,000 likes in two days (shown below).

Additionally, Taj Jackson also launched a GoFundMe ^[10] to pay for an "Untitled" competing documentary that would combat the allegations made within Leaving Neverland. Within one week of its launch, it raised more than $32,000 of its $777,000 goal.

Search Interest

External References