Antoine Fuqua's Michael Jackson bio, Michael, broke box office records for a film about a musician. Such is still the power of the pop star to draw. The pushback from many stemmed from the film not making light of the accusations made about Jackson. Instead, Fuqua stuck to the music.
Netflix isn't going to do that, it seems. While Fuqua might have had to make his movie a certain way due to out-of-court settlements between Jackson and those who accused him of wrongdoing, the streaming giant's direction is somewhat shocking.
Eschewing the music and in-person interviews from those accusing Jackson, it seems the three-part docuseries, Michael Jackson: The Verdict, which drops on June 3, will focus on the 2005 child sex abuse trial involving Jackson. Interviews were conducted with courtroom eyewitnesses, including jurors and persons from the media, according to Pitchfork.
Netflix to drop a docuseries based on 2005 trial involving Michael Jackson
One can rightfully assume that the Jackson estate and his family were not part of the making of the docuseries, but not because the series isn't factual or not, but because part of the suits that were settled prevented any party from making money off the suits or allegations by producing commercial projects based on them.
The 2005 suit was held in Santa Monica, California, and Jackson was acquitted of seven accounts of child molestation, and both of the counts of giving a minor alcohol.
Others have since accused Michael Jackson of untoward acts, and some of those have been made into documentaries as well. Perhaps the best known was 2019's Leaving Neverland, the name of the ranch in which Jackson lived.
None of this is addressed in Michael, of course, and the planned sequel also seemingly will not reenact what did or did not happen. The filmmakers is that situation are unable to do so.
Will Michael Jackson: The Verdict appease those critics who feel Antoine Fuqua's film didn't do nearly enough to discuss the entire Jackson story? Maybe not. Still, Netflix clearly hopes as many eyes tune in to see what the docuseries says as the vast number of people who have gone to theaters to see Michael.
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