Rotten Tomatoes
Submit search Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

Miniseries – Leaving Neverland

Play trailer 1:39 Poster for Miniseries – Leaving Neverland Mar 2019 Documentary Special Interest Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
98% Tomatometer 96 Reviews 26% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Two men describe the alleged abuse they suffered at the hands of Michael Jackson; a series of interviews craft a portrait of deception, sustained exploitation and complicated feelings.

Where to Watch

Leaving Neverland — Miniseries

Leaving Neverland — Miniseries

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Crucial and careful, Leaving Neverland gives empathetic breadth and depth to the complicated afterlife of child sexual abuse as experienced by adult survivors.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View More
Hugo Rifkind The Times (UK) 03/13/2019
Once Leaving Neverland hits its stride, though, what it captures so well is the emotional entanglement and exploitation on which Jackson, allegedly, relied. Go to Full Review
Angie Han Mashable 03/11/2019
Leaving Neverland's strength lies in its patience, and its willingness to engage with the complexity of these men's stories. Go to Full Review
Roxana Hadadi Pajiba 03/08/2019
Leaving Neverland lays out the links between abuse and seduction, forcing us to again consider why we worship celebrity. Go to Full Review
Brendan Cassidy InSession Film 07/09/2024
Leaving Neverland is a calling to all of those speaking out about their abusive pasts. But it extends even further than that, as it is also an invitation for us as fans of Michael Jackson and his music. Go to Full Review
Victoria Brownworth Philadelphia Gay News 05/26/2020
Leaving Neverland warns us - as did: Surviving R Kelly - that we can never again let adoration for any star blind us to the suffering of their most vulnerable victims. Go to Full Review
Kirk Baird Toledo Blade 12/20/2019
Far more subtly, the documentary calls attention to our celeb-obsessed culture, one that is quick to embrace celebrities as heroes but slow to let them go. Go to Full Review
Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More
Mick J @EFDAWEST Jul 23 If you want a more accurate portrayal than propaganda vehicle "Michael", this is important viewing See more Tori B @Filmfanhead Jun 28 A hard movie to watch. I think the people who have written comments that the guys are liars have no place to say that. Both men have very similar accounts, and I have a hard time believing two married men loved going on camera to say these things and it not be true. I love MJs music, but I do think his behavior with children was wrong. Just knowing he wanted to sleep with children in a bed together is very off. We'll never know what happened behind closed doors, but we do know he slept in beds with children, and we do know he was off. So, I don't think anyone can truly discount these men in this doc. The trolls don't know. They're just judging, and I hope the trolls never have strangers discount their truth. See more Bahar M @RT55912915 Jun 21 I watched Leaving Neverland and its follow-up with an open mind, but I personally did not find them convincing or reliable. Both documentaries felt heavily one-sided, focusing almost entirely on accusations while failing to present a balanced or complete picture of Michael Jackson as a person. What stood out to me was that I did not get a genuine sense of victimhood from the narrative. Instead, at times it felt more like a story built around personal interpretations and emotional dynamics rather than clear, consistent evidence. Based on everything I have seen over the years—his performances, interviews, and public life—these portrayals feel more focused on shaping a negative image of Michael Jackson than on fairly examining the truth. Overall, I found both films to be lacking in credibility and balance, and they did not leave me convinced. See more Ashy W @RT25323362 Jun 6 Very powerful. So brave for these men to speak up about what happened to them. I believe the victims See more R T. @RT55567978 Jun 3 Filled with inaccuracies and extremely one sided, with zero journalistic integrity. This shouldn’t even be called a documentary but a hit piece and a desperate cash grab. See more Bill D @Billdejean May 30 If those people are lying they must be the greatest actors that ever lived and it’s sick and evil for liberals to trash this movie. I have nothing against Jackson being a pedophile. It doesn’t make him a bad person. Acting on it did. He ruined people’s lives See more Read all reviews
Leaving Neverland — Miniseries

My Rating

Read More Read Less WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW POST RATING

Episodes

Episode 1 Aired Mar 3, 2019 Part 1 An exploration of the separate but parallel experiences of two young boys, James Safechuck, at age 10, and Wade Robson, at age 7, who were both befriended by Michael Jackson. Details Episode 2 Aired Mar 4, 2019 Part 2 An exploration of the separate but parallel experiences of two young boys, James Safechuck, at age 10, and Wade Robson, at age 7, who were both befriended by Michael Jackson. Details
I'll Be Gone in the Dark 96% 69% I'll Be Gone in the Dark Watchlist TRAILER for I'll Be Gone in the Dark Unveiled: Surviving La Luz del Mundo % 88% Unveiled: Surviving La Luz del Mundo Watchlist Murder in Boston: Roots, Rampage & Reckoning 100% 93% Murder in Boston: Roots, Rampage & Reckoning Watchlist TRAILER for Murder in Boston: Roots, Rampage & Reckoning Mind Over Murder 100% 88% Mind Over Murder Watchlist Phoenix Rising 97% 59% Phoenix Rising Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Season Info

Director
Dan Reed
Network
HBO
Rating
TV-MA
Genre
Documentary, Special Interest
Original Language
English
Release Date
Mar 3, 2019