Infamous Michael Jackson Movie’s HBO Removal Sharply Criticized By Director

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The documentary Leaving Neverland has been removed from its streaming service, and the director has expressed their dissatisfaction with the decision.

Leaving Neverland is an HBO documentary in two parts that explores allegations of sexual abuse against Michael Jackson. Directed by Dan Reed, the film includes interviews with Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who share their experiences. It first appeared on HBO in 2019.

Reed discussed the removal of Leaving Neverland from HBO in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. He explained that a previous agreement, a “non-disparagement clause,” legally obligated HBO to remove the documentary, even years later, as the clause apparently applied to everything the network would ever produce. You can find his complete statement below.

Michael Jackson’s estate had an agreement with HBO stemming from a 1992 concert recording in Budapest. This agreement included a clause preventing negative statements about Jackson. The estate initially argued this clause meant HBO could never say anything negative about him, which was an unreasonable interpretation. Eventually, the two parties reached a settlement, and as a result, HBO removed the documentary Leaving Neverland from its platform after it had been available for six years. HBO’s rights to the documentary only last until 2029, after which I can re-release it. A follow-up documentary was released on YouTube in the U.S., but the distribution wasn’t ideal.

Reed is clearly dedicated to sharing this story, but there’s a hurdle. HBO currently holds the rights to the documentary until 2029. Because of this agreement, Leaving Neverland can’t be streamed on other platforms until that contract expires.

Reed is interested in selling the film again once his current contract ends. He noted that the sequel was released on YouTube in the U.S., which he didn’t think was a good outcome. This implies that when he regains the rights to the HBO documentary, he’ll be looking for a distributor with a stronger reputation.

This legal dispute about negative statements actually began before the documentary Leaving Neverland came out. As the documentary was getting ready to be released, the Jackson estate pointed to an agreement from 1992 – a contract made during the “Dangerous” concert tour – that prevented people from making damaging statements.

Even though the creators of Leaving Neverland and HBO tried to prevent the lawsuit, Michael Jackson’s estate ultimately won a $100 million judgment. After HBO’s appeals failed, the documentary was eventually removed from the platform.

It’s strange to me that in 2026, Leaving Neverland has been removed from HBO, yet the new Michael movie is playing everywhere. What bothers me most is that the film completely avoids the serious accusations made against Jackson. I also heard the estate actually made some mistakes during the legal process, nearly breaking their agreement with one of the people who accused him.

The new film about Michael Jackson has received very different reactions. Critics haven’t been impressed, giving it a low score of 38% on Rotten Tomatoes, but fans overwhelmingly love it, with a 97% approval rating. This is particularly frustrating for director Dan Reed, considering his documentary Leaving Neverland hasn’t been widely released, while this more favorable portrayal of Michael Jackson is playing in thousands of theaters around the world.

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2026-04-26 16:24