HBO Denies Reports They Pulled "Leaving Neverland" From Programming

The sensational Leaving Neverland documentary has left fans divided as some stay true to their admiration of Michael Jackson while others admonish the music icon. Radio stations have removed his music from playlists, television shows have dropped his features from rotations, and his items have been taken out of museums. Amid the controversy and graphic accusations of sexual abuse as detailed by Wade Robson and James Safechuck in the series, Jackson's legacy has come into question.

The validity of Jackson's accusers' statements looked upon with skepticism almost immediately, but many were so moved by Leaving Neverland that they couldn't help but side with the alleged victims. Yet, a recent investigation into the timelines provided shed some light on inconsistencies. Safechuck alleges that he was abused between 1988 and 1992, saying that one of the incidents took place at the Neverland Train Station. However, Jackson biographer Mike Smallcombe tweeted documents that showed the train station was built in 1993 and wasn't operable until 1994. When Leaving Neverland director Dan Reed caught wind of the news he simply said, "Yeah, there seems to be no doubt about the station date. The date they have wrong is the end of the abuse," seeming to speak on behalf of Safechuck.

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In light of this new fact, media outlets reported that HBO planned on airing the documentary through the Spring and Summer, but recently decided to pull the program. "That report is untrue. Leaving Neverland is available on HBO through April 16th and then will continue to be available on HBO NOW and HBO GO," HBO told Complex. "It is now the second most watched [documentary] on HBO in 10 years having reached 7.5 million people for Part 1."

http://bit.ly/2WrfIpH April 11, 2019 at 06:55AM