Antoine Fuqua’s upcoming biopic on the King of Pop has been accused of hiding the most controversial bits of his life.

The legacy of the Late Michael Jackson, who was widely called the King of Pop, and still is to this day, might never be fully able to be expressed through the medium of entertainment. And yet, filmmaker Antoine Fuqua is said to be bringing his A-Game in the future as he is currently directing the upcoming biopic of the legendary musician, titled Michael.

Michael Jackson from his music video They Don’t Care About Us

While several documentaries may have been made in honor of the star’s life in the past, this will be the first major Hollywood production that will tell the tale of the early days of the star’s life and how he became a worldwide sensation.

But according to British filmmaker Dan Reed, who made one of the most famous documentaries about the star, titled Leaving Neverland, he claims that this film is Whitewashing all the dark aspects of Jackson’s life, most notably, his alleged p*dophilia and abuse allegations.

Dan Reed Claims That The Upcoming Michael Jackson Biopic Is Hiding His Controversial Past

A still from Leaving Neverland
The current landscape of the music industry, more specifically the Pop genre of music, might not have been where it is today if not for the legacy that Michael Jackson left behind.

Bringing a global cultural shift in the world of music was no easy feat, which is why the world deserves to know just how impactful his life was, and this is also the reason why Antoine Fuqua has tasked himself with bringing that story to the big screen through his upcoming biopic Michael.

But not all were roses and daisies in the life of the King of Pop, which is why Dan Reed’s popular documentary, titled Leaving Neverland, tackled the best and the worst parts of it. In that film, the filmmaker showed the p*dophilia allegations and victim testimonies of two men, named Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who were allegedly abused by the Beat It singer when they were young boys. 

But according to Reed, after reading the draft script of The Equalizer director’s upcoming biopic, he revealed that it will not tackle any of these topics and instead will solely focus on the glorification of the Late star’s life. In a recent interview with The Times of London, he accused the film of whitewashing Jackson’s past, saying:

“It’s an out-and-out attempt to completely rewrite the allegations and dismiss them out of hand, and contains complete lies. You never even see him alone with any boys, when it is a matter of fact that he shared his bed with small children for many years.”

These revelations are truly concerning simply because if this is the case, then the audiences and fans of the singer will never learn about the entire story that was written through Jackson’s actions.

What Do We Know About Michael So Far?

Michael Jackson in a still from the music video Billie Jean
Apart from the claims above, there is still a ton of information that is available on the upcoming films the production of the project is now in full swing.

Along with Fuqua’s direction, the film is being written by Oscar-nominated writer John Logan. As for the stars, we will see Oscar-nominated actor Colman Domingo playing Jackson’s abusive father Joe Jackson, while Top Gun: Maverick star Miles Teller will play John Branca, Jackson’s manager.

The legendary singer’s portrayal will be done by none other than the King of Pop’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, in the upcoming film.

Michael, in cinemas on April 18th, 2025.