Infamous Michael Jackson Movie’s HBO Removal Sharply Criticized By Director

Leaving Neverland has been yanked from its streaming platform, and the director is not happy about it.

Leaving Neverland is a two-part HBO documentary that focuses on the sexual abuse allegations against iconic pop star Michael Jackson. Directed by Dan Reed, the damning and heartbreaking documentary features on-screen interviews with accusers Wade Robson and James Safechuck. The series originally aired on HBO in 2019.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Reed speaks out on Leaving Neverland’s removal from HBO. He explains the legal background behind this removal, saying that a former “non-disparagement clause” actually “applied forever to everything HBO would ever do.” This meant removing Leaving Neverland after years. Check out the full quote below:

The Michael Jackson estate had a contract which Jackson had signed with HBO for a concert recording in Budapest in 1992. The contract contained a non-disparagement clause. The estate argued that the non-disparagement clause, which says, “You can’t say anything nasty about Michael,” applied forever to everything that HBO would ever do — which is patently ridiculous. Somehow the estate managed to persuade HBO to come to an amicable settlement. And that involved, after six years on the platform, taking Leaving Neverland down. HBO has a license only until 2029. So after that, I can resell it and make it available again. The sequel went out on YouTube in the U.S., which is pretty unsatisfying.

That said, it is clear that Reed is passionate about getting this story out there. Right now, HBO’s license lasts until 2029. This means that, while ousted from its home platform, Leaving Neverland will not be able to get a streaming home until this contract passes.

That said, Reed actively has an interest in selling the film again after this contract expires. He mentions that “the sequel went out on YouTube in the U.S.” which he found to be “unsatisfying.” This suggests that, when Reed does have rights to the HBO documentary back in his hands, he will want a more respected distributor.

The non-disparagement legal case in question actually dates back to before Leaving Neverland was even released on the platform. As the documentary prepared for its high-profile debut, the Jackson estate cited a non-disparagement clause that dated back to a 1992 contract for the “Dangerous” concert tour.

Despite the Leaving Neverland team and HBO’s attempts to block this case, the estate won to the tune of $100 million. HBO’s failed appeals put the nail in the coffin, eventually leading the platform to take the film down more recently.

And now, in 2026, Leaving Neverland is gone from HBO while the glamorous Michael biopic sits in theaters. Controversially, Michael does not address the sexual abuse claims against Jackson. The estate themselves had made errors in the process, almost breaching their own contract agreement with one of the accusers.

So far, Michael has been slammed by critics and revered by fans. The film has just a 38% Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes with over 200 reviews, whereas the fan base has awarded it a 97%. From Reed’s perspective, this is surely a slap in the face. Leaving Neverland remains undistributed while the romanticized Michael gets thousands of screens worldwide.