Paris Jackson has broken her silence on the Leaving Neverland documentary, which tells the story of two men who allege they were sexually abused by Michael Jackson when they were young boys.
The new documentary puts forward sexual abuse allegations against the so-called King of Pop.
The two-part, four-hour documentary features interviews with Wade Robson and James Safechuck – now in their thirties – who claim they were victimised by the late singer through ‘sustained exploitation and deception’.
You can watch the trailer for Leaving Neverland below:
The documentary has split opinions since its release, with notable figures such as Louis Theroux taking extreme stances on the matter.
And now the popstar’s daughter has broken her silence over the controversial documentary, replying to comments on her Twitter that said her father’s ‘legacy’ had been ‘ruined and his name smeared forever’.
Paris stuck up for her dad and his ‘good heart’, replying in the thread of messages saying it’s not possible to tear his name down.
The 20-year-old wrote:
yeah they do that to everyone with a good heart and tries to make a dfference but do you really think that it’s possible to tear his name down ? like do you truly believe they stand a chance ? relax and have peace.
According to reports, via the Metro, Paris hasn’t watched the Leaving Neverland documentary.
Some distressing scenes in the Leaving Neverland documentary show James Safechuck, who claims to be a victim of sexual assault at the hands of Jackson, say the singer ‘taught him to masturbate’.
The other alleged victim – Wade Robson – met Jackson after he won an MJ-themed dance competition, where first prize was the opportunity to meet the singer at one of his concerts. Safechuck first met the Billie Jean singer when he appeared in a Pepsi commercial.
The men both said that, as boys, they were enamoured with Jackson, and felt special when the pop star started paying attention to them.
Both men recall how Jackson would allegedly introduce physical contact during ‘sleepovers’, and would ‘escalate’ things from there. They also both claim Jackson would groom them, initiate mutual masturbation, and lecture them on how they shouldn’t trust their parents, or women.
As some fans of his music are calling for a boycott, others have defended Jackson, who maintained his innocence regarding allegations of child molestation until his death in 2009.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence contact the Rape Crisis England and Wales helpline on 0808 802 9999 (12-2:30 and 7-9:30).
Alternatively you can contact Victim Support on 08 08 16 89 111.
A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).