'Leaving Neverland' Director Brands Michael Jackson ‘Worse Than Jeffrey Epstein’ Ahead of Biopic Release

The biopic of Michael Jackson, titled Michael, has already sparked criticism from reviewers for avoiding the darker chapters in the pop icon's life.

Now, Dan Reed, director of the 2019 documentary Leaving Neverland, has slammed the biopic for omitting the s*xual abuse allegations against the late musician, while defending Jackson's accusers ahead of the film's release.

Reed claimed that people want to "turn a deaf ear" to the allegations against Jackson, and stated that Michael director Antoine Fuqua is cashing in on it.

Further, Reed went on to call the late musician “worse than Jeffrey Epstein.”

Ahead of the film's release, Reed spoke with The Hollywood Reporter and said he finds it difficult to understand Jackson's enduring popularity given the accusations made by Wade Robson and James Safechuck.

“It says that people don’t care that he was a child molester. Literally, people just don’t care,” he said.

“I think a lot of people just love his music and turn a deaf ear. And short of having actual video evidence of Michael Jackson engaged in s*xual intercourse with a 7-year-old child, I don’t know what would be sufficient to change these people’s minds,” Reed added.

Reed also addressed comments made by Fuqua to The New Yorker, in which the latter suggested that some accusations against the King of Pop could be financially motivated.

"Sometimes people do some nasty things for some money,” Fuqua had said.

Condemning Fuqua's remarks, Reed said, “For Antoine Fuqua to accuse people of gold-digging is kind of ironic. It seems to me all the people involved in this movie are just making bank.”

“How can you tell an authentic story about Michael Jackson without ever mentioning the fact that he was seriously accused of being a child m*lester?” Reed asked.

The Leaving Neverland director further reflected on the accusations and alleged victims of Jackson’s purported crimes.

Reed defended the accusers amid growing debate around Jackson's biopic. “Wade [Robson] and James [Safechuck], the protagonists of Leaving Neverland, have never made a cent from their accusations," he said.

“People don’t seem to understand: If you bring a lawsuit, you don’t get any money until you win in court. And when you win in court, that means you’ve proved your case, right?” he added.

Reed further criticized sections of the media, claiming some outlets avoid addressing the allegations due to pressure from Jackson’s estate and loyal fan base.

“I think clearly some of the press is sucking up to the Jackson machine because: A, the estate and the fan base has always ensured that the price of criticizing Michael is years of invective and smears and what have you,” he shared.

“And B, there’s a ton of money to be made by any kind of association with the Jackson IP,” Reed claimed.

He then went on to compare Jackson to the late s*x offender Jeffrey Epstein.

“So a lot of people, I think, will kind of swallow any misgivings they may have and just sort of say, 'Oh well, it’s a great jukebox movie' and just completely ignore the fact that this guy was worse than Jeffrey Epstein,” Reed said.

Jackson first faced abuse allegations in 1993, when 13-year-old Jordan Chandler accused him of assault.

However, the pop star denied the claims and settled the civil case for $20 million. In 2003, Gavin Arvizo accused the musician of child molestation.

Jackson was acquitted of all charges in June 2005 and died in 2009.