Katie Storey
Published April 6, 2019 8:17amUpdated November 14, 2019 5:40pm
A former biographer of Michael Jackson claims Leaving Neverland director Dan Reed has ‘damaged’ James Safechuck’s lawsuit against the star by effectively ‘changing his timeline of abuse for him’.
UK journalist and author Mike Smallcombe had originally contested James Safechuck’s claims that he was abused in the train station at Michael’s Neverland home by the Billie Jean hit-maker.
James alleges that he was abused by Michael between 1988 and 1992 and one of the allegations details an assault that he claims took place in an upstairs room in Neverland’s train station.
But, Smallcombe claims the construction of Neverland didn’t begin until the latter part of 1993, raising questions over Safechuck’s allegations.
Reed had defended Safechuck and addressed the alleged error, claiming that the ‘end date of abuse must be wrong’ and insisting that James had been present at Neverland before and after the station was built.
Speaking to The Mirror, Smallcombe has now said that Reed’s statement could provide difficulty for Safechuck’s lawsuit against Michael.
Safechuck and Wade Robson, who also appears in Leaving Neverland, are reportedly appealing against the dismissal of their lawsuits filed against the Jackson Estate – who have continuously denied all claims made against Michael.
He told the publication: ‘Reed has taken the astonishing step of changing Safechuck’s timeline himself, by now claiming Jackson continued to abuse him after the train station opened in 1994.
‘In his lawsuit, Safechuck testifies that he only visited Neverland once after 1992, and that was in “late 1995 or early 1996”. By then, Safechuck would have been 18 years old.
‘So by claiming Safechuck was “wrong” in his lawsuit, Reed is effectively saying Safechuck perjured himself.’
Smallcombe has also called out Reed for not ‘investigating the Leaving Neverland documentary properly’.
Reed, however, has had his say on those critical of the doc, claiming he was thorough in his investigations into both Safechuck and Robson’s accounts.
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‘I didn’t approach this in a naïve way,’ Reed said. ‘I listened very carefully to days and days and days of interviews, then we went and did about 18 months of research and checked everything we could and tried to poke holes in Wade and James’ accounts.
‘I interviewed the police investigators and the sheriff’s department investigators who were part of looking into Michael Jackson’s background, and none of them had any doubts at all about his guilt.’
Michael Jackson estate's statement on Leaving Neverland
'Leaving Neverland isn’t a documentary, it is the kind of tabloid character assassination Michael Jackson endured in life, and now in death. The film takes uncorroborated allegations that supposedly happened 20 years ago and treats them as fact.These claims were the basis of lawsuits filed by these two admitted liars which were ultimately dismissed by a judge. Thetwo accusers testified under oath that these events never occurred. They have provided no independent evidenceand absolutely no proof in support of their accusations, which means the entire film hinges solely on the word of twoperjurers.
'Tellingly, the director admitted at the Sundance Film Festival that he limited his interviews only to these accusers and their families. In doing so, he intentionally avoided interviewing numerous people over the years who spent significant time with Michael Jackson and have unambiguously stated that he treated children with respect and did nothing hurtful to them. By choosing not to include any of these independent voices who might challenge the narrative that he was determined to sell, the director neglected fact checking so he could craft a narrative so blatantly one-sided that viewers never get anything close to a balanced portrait.
'For 20 years, Wade Robson deniedin court and in numerous interviews, including after Michael passed, that he was a victim and stated he was grateful for everything Michael had done for him. His family benefitted from Michael’s kindness, generosity and career support up until Michael’s death. Conveniently left out of Leaving Neverland was the fact that when Robson was denied a role in a Michael Jackson themed Cirque du Soleil production, his assault allegations suddenly emerged.
'We are extremely sympathetic to any legitimate victim of child abuse. This film, however, does those victims a disservice. Because despite all the disingenuous denials made that this is not about money, it has always been about money – millions of dollars — dating back to 2013 when both Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who share the same law firm, launched their unsuccessful claims against Michael’s Estate. Now that Michael is no longer here to defend himself, Robson, Safechuck and their lawyers continue their efforts to achieve notoriety and a payday by smearing him with the same allegations a jury found him innocent of when he was alive.'
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