‘Leaving Neverland’ accuser shares statement amid ‘Michael’ release
James Safechuck, whose allegations of child sexual assault against Michael Jackson were the focus of the HBO documentary Leaving Neverland, has shared a statement of support for child sex abuse survivors amid the release of the new ‘Michael’ biopic.
Leaving Neverland, directed by Dan Reed, was released in 2019. It centred on interviews with Safechuck and Wade Robson, who both alleged that Jackson had sexually abused them when they were children, after befriending them on his Neverland ranch in California between the ages of seven and 10.
Jackson’s new biopic, directed by Antoine Fuqua, notably does not reference any of the scandals that defined Jackson’s latter years.
Though they were initially meant to be included, the film was forced to completely reshoot part of the movie due to new information that had come to light from a lawsuit involving Evan Chandler, an LA dentist and screenwriter who accused Jackson of sexually abusing his 13-year-old son in 1993.
In light of this, Safechuck has shared a new statement with Rolling Stone, which began, “The Michael movie is coming out and it’s getting a lot of promotion and there’s billboards and commercials and people praising Michael.”
He added, “It can be triggering for survivors who have their own Michael in their lives, whether it’s the priest who’s close to God or the sports coach who’s just helping the kids or the step-parent who’s supporting the family.”
Safechuck continued, “Our abusers are praised sometimes, even after we come out and tell the truth.”
After Safechuck reassured victims that “you are not alone”, he added that “there are other survivors out there that understand what you’re going through and that are there with you. And that if you’re feeling all the feels, then lean into people that are close to you, lean into people that support you and that give you love, and know that you’re not alone.”
He concluded, “Telling the truth and telling what happened is a good thing, and it’s a part of your healing. Alright, I love you, bye.”
Elsewhere, Leaving Neverland director Reed recently criticised the new movie and deemed the late ‘Smooth Criminal’ singer “worse than Jeffrey Epstein”.
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