On Monday night, the final part of Leaving Neverland aired on HBO. The two part documentary featured two men accusing late singer Michael Jackson of sexual abuse. After the controversial film aired, Oprah Winfrey hosted a sit down interview with director Dan Reed and Jackson’s accusers, Wade Robson and James Safechuck. Oprah Winfrey Presents: After Neverland took place in front of an audience of sexual abuse survivors.
Prior to the show airing, O Magazine released a statement, seemingly siding with the late singer’s alleged accusers. During After Neverland, Winfrey acknowledged that she would likely face criticizm for talking to Robson and Safechuck. “All the fans and the estate. You guys know you’re gonna get it, right? I’m gonna get it. Are you prepared for that?”
The after show resulted in mixed reviews, from those who supported the conversation, to those who began a #MuteOprah hashtag. Using the hashtag one fan wrote “Oprah’s lost off credibility with this one.” Actress Amanda Seales also wrote that Oprah’s Winfrey’s involvement was “irresponsible.”
Meanwhile, Jackson’s diehard fans have bombarded the comment section of Oprah’s Instagram account with hate messages. As a result the unshakable media titan turned off the comments on her latest Instagram post.
But during After Neverland Winfrey asked the questions asserted by Jackson’s superfans. Are Robson and Safechuck only coming forward for financial gain? Director Dan Reed emphatically denied that either of the men or their families received compensation for the film.
Robson also revealed that a lawsuit he filed against the Jackson estate in 2013 was about doing “something good with this bad,” not about remuneration.”
“Michael trained me and forced me to tell the lie for so many years, and particularly on the stand,” Wade continued. “And those were really traumatizing experiences for me that had a huge impact on the rest of my life. So the feeling was, I want an opportunity to reprocess that experience. I want to get on the stand again, because now I’m able to tell the truth.”
Robson claims he was molested MJ from the ages of 7-14, after winning a dance contest. Safechuck claims the late pop star began to sexually abuse him at the age of 10. The two met on the set of a Pepsi commercial.
Both men previously testified on behalf of Jackson during a separate child molestation trial. But during Leaving Neverland Safechuck’s mother, Stephanie, recalls dancing on the day Jackson died and exclaiming, “Oh, thank God he can’t hurt any more children.”
