“Leaving Neverland” director says Michael Jackson was 'worse than Jeffrey Epstein,' fans want to forget abuse claims

Wesley StenzelThu, April 23, 2026 at 11:22 PM UTC

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Michael Jackson in 1988Credit: Kevin Mazur/WireImageKey points -

Dan Reed thinks that people "turn a deaf ear" to the child sexual abuse allegations against Michael Jackson.

The Leaving Neverland director slammed Michael director Antoine Fuqua for suggesting that the singer's accusers were just seeking a payout: "Ironic."

Reed also opined that Jackson was "worse than Jeffrey Epstein."

Dan Reed doesn't want people to forget about the allegations against Michael Jackson.

On the heels of the new biopic Michael setting the box office ablaze, the documentary filmmaker behind 2019's Leaving Neverland weighed in on the singer's enduring popularity despite Wade Robson and James Safechuck accusing the "Thriller" musician of sexually abusing them as children in his documentary.

"It says that people don’t care that he was a child molester. Literally, people just don’t care," Reed told THR. "I think a lot of people just love his music and turn a deaf ear. And short of having actual video evidence of Michael Jackson engaged in sexual intercourse with a 7-year-old child, I don’t know what would be sufficient to change these people’s minds."

Jaafar Jackson in 'Michael'Credit: Lionsgate Movies/Youtube

Antoine Fuqua, the director of Michael, recently responded to the accusations against Jackson in an interview with The New Yorker. "Sometimes people do some nasty things for some money," the Training Day filmmaker suggested.

Reed condemned Fuqua's remarks. "For Antoine Fuqua to accuse people of gold digging is kind of ironic," he said. "It seems to me all the people involved in this movie are just making bank."

Dan Reed in Los Angeles on Sept. 14, 2019Credit: JC Olivera/WireImage

Entertainment Weekly has reached out to representatives for Fuqua, the Jackson estate, and Lionsgate, the studio behind the film, for comment.

The documentarian also criticized Michael for failing to acknowledge the accusations against the musician. "How can you tell an authentic story about Michael Jackson without ever mentioning the fact that he was seriously accused of being a child molester?" Reed asked. "I just don’t really see it. If anyone’s making money, it’s Michael Jackson’s estate and the people who worked on this biographical picture."

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Reed went on to defend Jackson's accusers. "Wade and James, the protagonists of Leaving Neverland, have never made a cent from their accusations," he said. "People don’t seem to understand: If you bring a lawsuit, you don’t get any money until you win in court. And when you win in court, that means you’ve proved your case, right?"

The filmmaker also called out the media for failing to adequately acknowledge the accusations against Jackson. "I think clearly some of the press is sucking up to the Jackson machine because: A, the estate and the fan base has always ensured that the price of criticizing Michael is years of invective and smears and what have you," he opined. "And B, there’s a ton of money to be made by any kind of association with the Jackson IP. If you can get on board and be part of the success of this movie, then that’s going to be good for you."

He continued, "So a lot of people, I think, will kind of swallow any misgivings they may have and just sort of say, 'Oh well, it’s a great jukebox movie' and just completely ignore the fact that this guy was worse than Jeffrey Epstein."

Michael Jackson in New York City on Sept. 9, 1988Credit: Santi Visalli/Getty

Jackson was first accused of sexual abuse by 13-year-old Jordan Chandler in 1993. The singer denied the allegations and eventually settled a civil case from the accuser's family for over $20 million. Authorities investigated the singer but found no incriminating evidence, so he never faced criminal charges in the case.

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The "Billie Jean" singer was later arrested on child molestation charges in 2003, and was eventually indicted on 10 criminal counts. The allegations came from Gavin Arvizo, and the son of a former member of Jackson's household staff also accused the singer of molesting him. Jackson was acquitted of all charges in June 2005.

Jackson died at age 50 in 2009. In 2013, Robson accused the singer of years of sexual abuse as he began legal proceedings against Jackson's estate and his companies MJJ Productions and MJJ Ventures. A year later, Safechuck filed a similar suit against the companies. A judge dismissed both cases due to technicalities in 2017, but did not evaluate the credibility of their accusations.

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