TV review: Leaving Neverland 2 lacks the explosive impact of the first show

Michael Jackson performs in 1984. The documentary Leaving Neverland 2 continues Wade Robson and James Safechuck's story. Picture: AP Photo/Doug Pizac, File

You know the feeling. You hear a Michael Jackson song on the radio and think, “Hang on, I thought he was cancelled.”

It turns out he wasn’t.

He nearly was when Leaving Neverland aired in 2019, telling the stories of Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who claimed they were sexually abused by Michael Jackson when they were young boys. The accusations, along with stories of huge payouts from Jackson to other boys who claimed they were sexually abused by the singer, put a huge dent in the singer’s reputation. But Jackson, who died in 2009, is back on the radio, thanks to fans who refuse to accept he could be a paedophile.

Leaving Neverland 2: Surviving Michael Jackson (Channel 4) takes up the story. Robson and Safechuck are still going through the courts, suing Jackson’s management companies, saying they did nothing to stop the alleged abuse. There are eye-popping moments here, not least the media reaction when the two men went public in 2019.

One TV host announces to a startled-looking colleague that she doesn’t believe a word of their accusations. In her world, there is nothing wrong with a young boy sharing a bed with an older man on a sleepover, and if “mother nature takes its course and you get a hard penis”, that’s fine.

Wade Robson, director Dan Reed, and James Safechuck. Picture: Taylor Jewell/Invision/AP, File

In the meantime, there was a queue of people (including Jackson’s brothers) to say that Robson and Safechuck were only interested in the money.

You can make up your own mind. I still get the ick when I hear a Jackson tune on the radio, and not just because he had terrible songs. Whatever you believe, this follow-up lacks the explosive impact of the first show. The accusations are still gruesome and credible, but we’ve heard them before. The new material here is prolonged legal argument around whether or not the two men can sue Jackson’s company for negligence. It’s all a bit niche.

There is a lot of face-time with lawyers telling us why they will win the case. It feels like padding compared to the first show, which was four hours of gripping TV, building what felt like an irrefutable case against Jackson. (Unless you’re a TV host with a bonkers view of adult/child sleepovers.)

The legal arguments finally end here, with a trial date set for 2026. So keep an eye out for another round of Leaving Neverland.

In the meantime, two men wait for some kind of closure.

And Michael Jackson songs play away on the radio.