There is no reference to the significant allegations of child sexual abuse levelled against Jackson, nor the childhood abuse he claimed to have endured from his father, Joe Jackson.<\/p>\n
A shot of Jackson and his family laughing around a kitchen table flashes across the screen between scenes of the pop star performing on stage.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Michael promises to give viewers a look at Michael Jackson’s life beyond the music. (Universal Pictures)<\/p>\n
“This is your story. I know your past and embrace the future. That’s what people want,” Jones says in a voice-over.<\/p>\n
Oversight reportedly prompted delays<\/p>\n
Legal troubles were behind the delays, according to entertainment reporter Matt Belloni<\/a>, who reportedly read the initial script.<\/p>\n Michael Jackson was found not guilty on 10 counts of child sexual abuse in 2005.\u00a0 (Reuters: Gene Blevins)<\/p>\n He wrote that the film was set to include scenes about Jordan Chandler, a child who Jackson was accused of sexually abusing in 1993.<\/p>\n Jackson settled with the family in a civil lawsuit in 1994 and was never criminally charged in the case.<\/p>\n Belloni said the script “went to great lengths” to portray Jackson as the alleged victim of extortion.<\/p>\n The Jackson estate had reportedly overlooked that the scenes would violate the terms of the settlement, and the discovery forced production to return for reshoots.<\/p>\n The pop singer was charged with child sex abuse in a case involving a separate child, but was acquitted by a jury in 2005.<\/p>\n Jackson, who died in 2009, denied all allegations of child sexual abuse brought against him.<\/p>\n Early scripts criticised<\/p>\n The film has been criticised for appearing to sanitise the star’s life in the lead-up to its release.<\/p>\n Dan Reed, who directed and produced Leaving Neverland \u2014 a documentary that chronicles child sexual abuse allegations against Jackson<\/a> \u2014 read a draft of the screenplay, according to a report by Variety<\/a>.<\/p>\n The filmmaker is quoted as saying Michael was “startlingly disingenuous” for making a point to discredit the allegations.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n