A still from Leaving Neverland.
Photo: HBO
Leaving Neverland, the 2019 documentary about Michael Jackson’s alleged child abuse, is returning with a sequel, but not to HBO. Dan Reed’s movie was a hit on the platform and won the Primetime Emmy for Best Documentary or Nonfiction Special. However, Leaving Neverland 2: Surviving Michael Jackson is out on YouTube in the United States. Below, everything we know about the follow-up and the lawsuits involved.
The original Leaving Neverland chronicled the allegations of childhood sexual abuse against Michael Jackson by Wade Robson and James Safechuck. Its sequel follows Robson and Safechuck as they attempt to get a trial after suing Jackson’s companies, which are controlled by his estates. Currently, the case is set to go to trial in California in 2026.
The full 53-minute-long documentary is currently available on YouTube. In the U.K., the documentary premiered on March 18 on Channel 4.
Following the release of Leaving Neverland in 2020, the Michael Jackson estate sued HBO for $100 million, claiming the company violated a 1992 non-disparagement agreement. The suit was settled by both sides in 2024, but, according to Puck’s Matt Belloni, HBO took down the original Leaving Neverland from Max as part of the settlement.
Dan Reed, the British director who made both films, says releasing the documentary on YouTube was not necessarily his choice. “I would have loved to release this with HBO,” Reed told Variety on March 13. “That wasn’t possible. Clearly, it’s related to the lawsuit or the arbitration dispute. But HBO don’t call me up and say, ‘Hey, this is what’s happening with that case.’ It all happens under wraps, so I don’t know.” However, he does seem excited about the prospect of a YouTube release in comparison to a streaming project. “It feels as though maybe the world of streaming is more cautious [about] tricky subjects, political subjects, subjects that put people’s teeth on edge and make them upset,” he said to Deadline in a March 13 story. “In order not to strike the wrong note with such a vast subscribership, you can’t really afford to do anything that isn’t absolutely safe.”
This is intended to be a three-part series with the third installment covering the trial. Reed told Variety that he considers this film, the second installment, to be “a bridge film in between what was a pretty high-profile start and what I hope will be a very dramatic ending.”
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