The Michael Jackson Biopic and the Cancellation That Wasn’t
First, let’s establish two things. One: Michael, the biopic sanctioned by the Michael Jackson estate that opened Friday, is almost certain to make an enormous amount of money. The movie’s currently on track for a $70 million opening in North America alone, and could make $80 million (or more) internationally. And that’s just in its first weekend. These aren’t Thriller numbers, but they’re certainly healthy, particularly in the wake of several recent movies about musicians that crashed and burned both critically and commercially. Two: At least five boys, now men, have credibly and publicly accused Jackson of sexually abusing them when they were between the ages of 7 and 12. How can both of these things be true at the same time? Filmmaker Dan Reed has a simple explanation. “People don’t care that he was a child molester,” he told The Hollywood Reporter this week. “Literally, people just don’t care.” He’s right. Reed’s 2019 documentary, Leaving Neverland, a four-hour accounting of the allegations against Jackson, is excruciatingly detailed and powerfully compelling. It’s difficult, if not …






