“Leaving Neverland” is not a real documentary, but a slick promotional film purporting to tell the true stories of the accusers, which are completely unverified.
With “Leaving Neverland,” #MeToo vaults into the great beyond, such that anyone and everyone can now be defamed whether guilty or not, whether alive or dead. The new accusations against Jackson are just the latest (all the others having been proved untrue), this time targeting a man who cannot defend himself since he died in 2009. This reticence is due to the current #MeToo climate requiring us to #BelieveSurvivors, and also the animus of the press toward The King of Pop – widely considered The Greatest Entertainer of All Time. With some exceptions, such as Macaulay Culkin and Diana Ross, the big Hollywood stars are hanging back, reluctant to speak out in Jackson’s defense, although this may change, as the situation is developing rapidly. The mainstream media was all over this extravaganza, and is still hanging in there, despite an increasing number of problems regarding the allegations. For a total of five hours, we hear their grisly stories of masturbation, French kissing, pornography, and anal rape, in vivid and horrifying detail, but without a shred of corroborating evidence. “After Neverland” features Oprah in conversation with Robson and Safechuck. The stars of the film are Wade Robson and James Safechuck, alleged victims of childhood sexual abuse by Michael Jackson, with supporting roles for members of their families.
Following part 2, HBO featured a one-hour special with Oprah, “Oprah Winfrey Presents: After Neverland” (also shown on her channel OWN). The film was then aired with great fanfare on HBO on two consecutive nights, March 3 (part 1) and March 4 (part 2). The new pseudo-documentary, “Leaving Neverland,” directed by Dan Reed, hit the scene with a four-hour screening at Sundance on January 25, 2019.