Emmy-winning filmmaker Dan Reed, who made Leaving Neverland documenting the alleged sexual-abuse allegations against Michael Jackson, has come forward to slam Michael, the biopic of pop superstar, claiming it promotes a “false narrative.” He argued that the film turns the truth “on its head” in its portrayal of the late singer.
Dan Reed slams Michael
In an interview with Variety, Dan Reed spoke about the biopic, which stars Michael’s nephew Jaafar Jackson in the lead role. He feels the “issue of his relationship with children is completely distorted by the fact that they portray him as an eccentric, overgrown child, which we know is not the full story”.
Talking about the scenes of the pop star with children visiting sick kids in the cancer ward of a hospital, the filmmaker said, “That made me feel really icky. It suggests that Jackson’s engagement with children was entirely benign and motivated by nothing but philanthropy… I’m not calling for Jackson to be “canceled” and for nobody to listen to his music, but Wade and James’ story needs to be respected as well, and what the movie does is creates a version of events that essentially portrays Wade, James, and others who’ve accused Jackson of child sexual abuse as liars without actually articulating it.”
According to Dan, the film “just flips the truth on its head”. The biopic wraps up in the 1980s before the abuse allegations came to light. Addressing it, the filmmaker wondered why the makers are dancing around it, sharing that neither the estate nor the writer of the film nor anyone else has provided an alternative narrative for the same.
When asked about Antoine Fuqua’s remark on abuse allegations against MJ, stating that “sometimes people do nasty things for money”, Dan mentioned, “Someone who’s made tens of millions pushing a false narrative around a man who’s a paedophile, that’s a nasty thing. Mr. Fuqua has described his own actions while attempting to smear the protagonists of my documentary, and that makes me laugh.”
With Leaving Neverland, which premiered on HBO in 2019, Dan detailed Wade Robson and James Safechuck’s accounts of alleged childhood abuse at Jackson’s hands. The film won an Emmy, with the Jackson Estate deriding the decision to honour “a complete fiction” that is “completely one-sided.”
More about Michael
Helmed by Antoine Fuqua and written by John Logan, Michael also stars Nia Long, Laura Harrier, Miles Teller, and Colman Domingo. The film chronicles Michael Jackson’s journey from Gary, Indiana, to global superstar, featuring his early years with the Jackson 5, his breakthrough album Off The Wall, and his superstardom with Thriller. It traces the pop star’s life from the 1960s to 80s, charting his rise as a star as part of the Jackson 5 to solo stardom after Off The Wall and Thriller, his breakthrough albums in the late 70s and early 80s.
The film has received negative reviews from critics, with many criticising the film for ‘whitewashing’ and ‘sanitising’ the singer’s image. However, none of it stopped the fans from flocking to the theatres in large numbers. In India, the film has made ₹21.15 crore till now.