Park City police are preparing to respond to threats of protests at the world premiere of Leaving Neverland, a new documentary from director Dan Reed that investigates child abuse claims against Michael Jackson. “We have increased our staffing out of concerns for the potential for a protest,” Park City Police told Deadline about the January 25 premiere.
Leaving Neverland delves into the allegations of sexual abuse and child molestation against Michael Jackson, told through personal accounts of his alleged victims. (Neverland was the name of Jackson's sprawling California ranch.) The documentary focuses on Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who claim they were sexually abused by Jackson when they were ages 7 and 10.
Robson testified in Jackson's defense at the singer's 2005 trial, where he was charged with molesting a 13-year-old boy. A jury found Jackson not guilty. At the time, Robson told the court he spent the night in Jackson's bed, but was never molested. In 2013, he filed an unsuccessful lawsuit against Jackson's estate, saying Jackson sexually assaulted him for years.
When the documentary was announced earlier this month, a representative for Jackson's estate said in a statement that the film was "just another rehash of dated and discredited allegations."
Sources told Deadline that police are on high alert prepared to deal with any sort of threat.
Meanwhile, Sundance issued a warning to its sponsors this month: “It has come to our attention that some of you may have received messages or social media posts from Michael Jackson fans who would like us to pull the screening of Leaving Neverland.”
The documentary lands at an interesting time for the music industry, which is grappling with the fallout of Surviving R. Kelly, a documentary that sparked new police investigations against the singer.
Leaving Neverland is scheduled to premiere this spring on HBO.
Matt Miller is a Brooklyn-based culture/lifestyle writer and music critic whose work has appeared in Esquire, Forbes, The Denver Post, and documentaries.
