Dan Reed, the director of the documentary “Leaving Neverland”, in which Wade Robson and Jimmy Safechuck bear damning testimony against Michael Jackson, who would have sexually abused them for years, condemns the biopic of Antoine Fuqua
As the Michael Jackson biopic takes shape and director Antoine Fuqua recently announced that Jafaar Jackson, the King of Pop’s nephew, will take on the role of his uncle on the big screen, Dan Reed, the director of the documentary Leaving Neverland shock, denounces the project.
Broadcast on television in March 2019, Leaving Neverland was devoted to the suspicions of pedophilia that have weighed on Michael Jackson since 1993. The film presents the testimonies of two alleged victims, James Safechuck and Wade Robson. The latter recount the relationship that bound them to the King of Pop and the abuse they allegedly suffered when they were 7 and 10 years old.
Interviewed by the British newspaper The Guardian on the announcement of the biopic dedicated to Michael Jackson, Dan Reed expresses his anger and explains why this film is problematic.
“At a time when full-throated outrage accompanies anything that smacks of delegitimization or insensitivity to a vulnerable group, this amounts to deafening silence.you.”
No one is talking about “cancelling” this movie, which will glorify a man who raped children.
He adds : “What the complete lack of outrage accompanying the announcement of this biopic tells us is that the fascination with Michael Jackson is still very strong despite his death. It seems the press, his fans, and the vast older population that grew up loving Jackson are ready to put aside his unhealthy relationship with children. (…)
If you know your idol abused children, shouldn’t celebrating their personality be a bit more problematic, to put it mildly?”
Written by John Logan, who notably collaborated with Martin Scorsese (Aviator, Hugo Cabret) and Sam Mendes (Skyfall, 007 Spectre), the film will be produced by Graham King, to whom we owe the hit biopic devoted to Freddie Mercury, Bohemian Rhapsody.
When the feature film was announced, The Hollywood Reporter stated that the film “will cover all aspects of Jackson’s life”. However, it is unclear exactly how the film will address the many controversies involving the singer, especially since Michael Jackson’s family is involved in this biopic.
“You are sending a message to millions of survivors of sexual abuse”
And this is what Dan Reed largely regrets, who is indignant: “To the director and the producers of this film, I say: How are you going to represent the moment when Jackson, a grown man, takes a child by the hand and leads him into this room? How will you portray what happens next?
By sidestepping the question of Jackson’s predilection for sleeping with young boys, you send a message to millions of child sexual abuse survivors. That message is: if a pedophile is wealthy and popular enough, society will forgive him.”