Leaving Neverland

film by Reed [2019]

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July 22, 2026

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Leaving Neverland is a 2019 documentary film that presents allegations of child sexual abuse against Michael Jackson by Wade Robson and James Safechuck. The film aired on HBO and details their experiences with Jackson when they were children.1

Michael Jackson was previously accused of child molestation in 1993, a civil suit for which was settled out of court. In 2003, he faced further charges for alleged abuse involving a different boy, but he was acquitted in 2005. Robson and Safechuck were not subjects of these earlier legal cases.21

Jackson's estate denied the allegations presented in Leaving Neverland, calling the film fictional and suing HBO. The case against HBO was dismissed in 2024 following a settlement that removed the film from their programming, though Robson and Safechuck continued their civil suits against Jackson's estate. More recent allegations have also emerged from a family suing Jackson's estate.1

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Michael Jackson
Legacy
Later documentaries include Leaving Neverland (2019), which aired on HBO and centers on two men, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who allege that Jackson sexually abused them when they were children. Although both men sued Jackson’s estate after Jackson’s death, neither was a subject of the court cases…
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Later documentaries include Leaving Neverland (2019), which aired on HBO and centers on two men, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who allege that Jackson sexually abused them when they were children. Although both men sued Jackson’s estate after Jackson’s death, neither was a subject of the court cases…
Read More