Leaving Neverland (2019) (Stephenverse)

Leaving Neverland is a 2019 documentary film directed and produced by British filmmaker Dan Reed. It focuses on two men, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who allege they were sexually abused as children by the singer Michael Jackson. The film is a co-production between the UK broadcaster Channel 4 and the US broadcaster HBO. Following its premiere at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2019, it was broadcast on HBO in two parts on March 3, 2019, and as a shortened version on Channel 4.

It was panned by critics, audiences, and fans alike, and it was widely considered to be the worst documentary film ever made. The failure of the film led the film to be pulled from streaming services, TV Broadcasts, and it was never released on home video on DVD, nor on Blu-Ray.

Plot
Director Dan Reed described Leaving Neverland as a "study of the psychology of child sexual abuse, told through two ordinary families ... groomed for twenty years by a pedophile masquerading as a trusted friend." In the film, Robson and Safechuck allege that Jackson sexually abused them when they were children, Safechuck beginning in 1988, Robson beginning in 1990. They give graphic descriptions of Jackson's sex acts, including masturbation, oral sex, and anal sex, which they allege took place at his home, Neverland Ranch, and other locations.

The two men say that these acts were regarded as "romantic" and did not realize they were inappropriate until adulthood. Safechuck says Jackson once took him shopping for an engagement ring, which he kept as memorabilia, and held a mock wedding. He began therapy in 2013 and recalled his trauma for the first time. Stephanie Safechuck, his mother, describes feeling elated and dancing when Jackson died in February 2011. Robson says Jackson told him to distrust women. Both men claimed that Jackson tried pushing them away from their families and "brainwashing" them. Jackson allegedly sent the two men "love letters" and set up security systems at Neverland to prevent other people from witnessing their sexual acts.

Safechuck says Jackson eventually replaced him with Brett Barnes, and Robson says he was replaced by actor Macaulay Culkin, because Jackson preferred prepubescent boys. Robson says he was given Jackson memorabilia as a child; he is photographed burning those items at the end of the film.

Reception
The film was panned by critics, and audiences alike, Criticizing its no evidence, disrespectful to Micheal Jackson, and its attempt to cancel Micheal Jackson, and it's memorable. On Rotten Tomatoes, Leaving Neverland holds an approval rating of 2% based on 212 reviews, with an average score of 1.3/10. Its consensus states: "Leaving Neverland fails to have this victory of political correctness for the late Micheal Jackson with no evidance, and fans would trash this film out of its way.". On Metacritic, it holds a weighted average of 1/100, indicating "overwhelming dislike", based on 46 reviews.

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times and Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune both gave Leaving Neverland both thumbs down and zero out of four, describing a documentary film "A movie attempted a major victory for political correctness for this late greatest singer of all tim,e Micheal Jackson, so the Jackson fans would've hated him".

One critic who gave a positive review, David Fear wrote in Rolling Stone: "By offering these men a forum, this doc has clearly chosen a side. Yet the thoroughness with which it details this history of allegations, and the way it personalizes them to a startling degree, is hard to shake off.

Upon a release, a small amount people believe that the documentary was actually true, leading a few radio stations to remove Jackson's music, a couple of statues, and small items of memorabilia being taken down. However, they were eventually put back up.