Michael Jackson Documentaries You Should Watch
Oct 26, 2022
Long before the award-winning Leaving Neverland arrived on our screens, or those poorly made conspiracy-fuelled stan rebuttals, there was already an extensive collection of documentaries highlighting Michael Jackson’s questionable relationships with young boys, as well as his eccentric behaviour.
While none of them had the same impact as Dan Reed’s documentary, there are still some good gems buried deep on the Internet made years before Leaving Neverland and even a few made afterwards.
Below is a list of some of my favourites, in no particular order.
Release date: 2022.
Nothing to do with child sex abuse, but an insight into his Neverland zoo and the fate of his caged animals. You don't have to be a genius to work out that keeping wild, exotic animals in cages in your backyard is a cruel practice. After Michael Jackson was acquitted in 2005, he moved to Bahrain, and left his animals behind. Some of them ended up in good homes, others ended up dead.
View at: Vimeo.com
Release date: 2003
After losing out to Martin Bashir, Louis Theroux makes his own documentary about Michael Jackson. An interesting journey that highlights the paranoid stan community and a scene where Joe Jackson charges the BBC thousands of dollars for an interview.
View at: Dailymotion.com
Release date: 2004
Re-explores the allegations made by Jordan Chandler in 1993. Contains interviews from many key individuals, including Jordan’s uncle Ray Chandler, journalist Diane Dimond, lead LAPD investigator Bill Dworin, and the Sodium Amytal conspiracy story, as told by Mary Fisher.
View at: Vimeo.com
Release date: 2003
Martin Bashir is granted unprecedented access to Michael Jackson and his Neverland ranch over multiple months. It was intended to reignite Jackson’s fading career. Things, however, didn’t go to plan. Jackson was filmed holding hands with 12-year-old Gavin Arvizo, openly admitting to sharing his bed with boys, and dangling his youngest child over a hotel balcony. It was a PR disaster.
View at: Vimeo.com
Also known as: “Michael Jackson’s Boys”
Release date: 2005
Many people don’t know that Martin Bashir also made a second documentary on Jackson after “Living with Michael Jackson,” this time focusing entirely on his relationship with boys and the allegations. Contains some great interviews and archive footage from various guests.
View at: vimeo.com
Release date: 2007
Film maker and Jackson fan, Jacques Peretti, starts questioning whether his childhood Idol could have been a serial child molester. Contains some great interviews, including Jackson’s former PR manager, Bob Jones, who confirms that Jackson and Jordan Chandler spent days alone in a Monaco hotel room.
View at: vimeo.com
Release date: 2020
Another Michael Jackson documentary from Jacques Peretti. This time he goes back to the beginning and charts the rise and fall of Jackson’s career, as well as further exploring the allegations of child sex abuse, and the recent Leaving Neverland documentary.
View at: dailymotion.com
Release date: 2005
Channel 4 documentary about the nature of fandom. Follows multiple Michael Jackson fanatics across Europe and the USA with an insight into their life and their creepy obsession for him.
View at: vimeo.com
Release date: 2019
Australian documentary that re-examines the allegations against Michael Jackson shortly before the release of Leaving Neverland. Contains some very interesting interviews from ex-Neverland employees, Jackson family members, journalists and ex-prosecutors.
View at dailymotion.com
Release date: 2019
Oprah Winfrey interviews Leaving Neverland subjects James Safechuck, Wade Robson and director Dan Reed. Filmed in front of a live audience consisting of sexual abuse survivors, with heart-warming and touching stories.
View at: vimeo.com
Release date: 2005
An examination and analysis of the 14-week Michael Jackson child molestation trial, which led to his acquittal on June 13, 2005. This documentary features interviews with jurors, members of the defence, and commentary from legal experts. While it contains several half-truths, particularly from those defending Jackson, it still showcases a number of compelling interviews that offer noteworthy insights into the case.
View at: vimeo.com
Release date: 2023
A disturbing documentary was released back in March 2023, which as the name suggests, documents the life of the celebrity fixer and convicted criminal Anthony Pellicano, who Michael Jackson hired in 1993 after the Jordan Chandler allegations. Contains details of how he removed and destroyed possible incriminating or illegal items from Michael Jackson's properties.
View at: vimeo.com Part 1 | Part 2
Release date: 2019
I cannot conclude my documentary list without recommending Dan Reed's Leaving Neverland. This impactful film shares the compelling stories of James Safechuck and Wade Robson, delving into their initial defences of Michael Jackson and the troubling reasons behind their false denials after enduring years of grooming and manipulation.
View at: YouTube.com Part 1 | Part 2
If you live outside of the USA, you may need to use a VPN to access the documentary.