Netflix is exploring Michael Jackson’s 2005 child molestation trial and the media circus that surrounded the court proceedings in a new three-part docuseries.
“Michael Jackson: The Verdict,” released Wednesday, revisits the legal saga with new interviews from key figures in the case, including members of the prosecution and defense, journalists who covered the four-moth trial and some of the jurors.
Jackson famously went to trial in 2005 after being accused of molesting 13-year-old Gavin Arvizo at his Neverland Ranch in California.
The “Billie Jean” singer was acquitted on all charges, though there’s been continued interest in the case since his 2009 death.
The documentary comes on the heels of the new “Michael” biopicthat’s been a massive box office success. The film, directed by Antoine Fuqua, didn’t include the abuse allegations and trial. A sequel is in development.
“Michael Jackson: The Verdict” director Nick Green and executive producer Fiona Stourton told Netflix’s Tudum“it was time” to revisit Jackson’s trial and the lingering questions surrounding the case.
“Anyone interested in the Michael Jackson story should feel this documentary gives them a window into what was largely a closed event and a chance to feel closer to what happened,” the filmmakers said.
Here are the biggest bombshells from “Michael Jackson: The Verdict.”
Michael allegedly had crude nicknames for young boys
During the first part of the doc, former crisis publicist and associate Vincent Amen speaks about how he worked for Jackson and was tasked with looking after Gavin and his family while they stayed at Neverland Ranch during the media firestorm.
Amen reveals he has Polaroids featuring Gavin’s mom, Janet, and his younger brother, Star, that he’s held onto from Neverland for the last 20 years.
The Polaroid of Star has a handwritten message by him that reads, “I love you, my daddy Michael. Your son, Blowhole.”
Amen claims, “These are the nicknames that Michael would give these young boys.”
The Polaroid of Janet, meanwhile, says: “Dearest loving Michael, we appreciate you being our family. What God brings together, no man can undo. We love you.”
Michael and his assistant allegedly watched child porn together
Later in the first episode, Amen explains how Jackson’s friend and assistant, Frank Tyson, cleaned his house of anything that came from Neverland Ranch following Jackson’s November 2003 arrest.
Amen claims Tyson gave him a Nike bag. When he opened it because he felt “suspicious,” Amen found a lewd magazine inside.
“I start flipping through it, and there was a sharpie … circles around the video ordering section,” Amen recalls. “Someone wanted these videos, circled the ones they want. These videos, which are children naked. Some with family, some just naked children.”
Amen says he confronted Tyson, who confessed he and Jackson ordered and watched child porn together.
“He says, ‘That’s just a phase that Michael and I went through. He circled the videos that he wanted, I ordered them, it was a phase that we went through,’” Amen remembers Tyson telling him. “They watched them together.
“When I heard that, I was in disbelief,” Amen continues. “I was very upset. My inclination was, after finding this and sitting there thinking about it, was that Frank is so close to Michael that he’s covering up for him. That was the defining moment for me. That was the moment that hit me so hard where I realized that there’s something going on here.”
The episode notes Tyson “did not respond to a request for comment.”
Michael’s substance abuse was allegedly ‘astronomical’ after his arrest
Defense attorney Mark Geragos claims Jackson’s “ingestion of substances was just astronomical” after the singer was arrested and released after posting a $3 million bond.
“There was a time when I actually saw him in the fetal position on the floor, and I thought, ‘What do we do?’” Geragos says. “I mean, you don’t want his death to be on your hands because you took some inaction.”
Geragos describes the time for Jackson as “horrific” and admits the defense team “had genuine concerns” if Jackson could “physically or mentally” handle a trial.
Jurors allegedly danced in their seats to Michael’s music during his trial
The 2003 “Living with Michael Jackson” documentary film — in which journalist Martin Bashir interviewed Jackson about his relationships with children, among other topics — was played during Jackson’s trial as evidence.
During Part 2 of “The Verdict,” Bashir says the jury “was enjoying the film because it was fabulous and had the music of Michael Jackson.”
Jackson’s biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli, who was at the trial, recalls, “I looked around, and all the people in the courtroom and the jury and the judge, everybody’s just bobbing their heads up and down.”
Investigative journalist Diane Dimon, who covered the case, says the jurors were “swaying in their seats” to Jackson’s music.
Juror No. 8 Melissa Herard admits it “was neat” seeing Jackson sit in court as his music played.
Michael allegedly received death threats during his trial
Kerry Anderson, Jackson’s director of security, says he was “concerned” for Jackson’s safety during the trial. Jackson notably greeted fans out his car window when he would arrive and leave the courthouse everyday.
“We had threat assessments done that [found that] there were idiots saying they were gonna kill him,” Anderson explains. “When you expose yourself to people who say they’re gonna kill you, that’s when they can obviously do it.”
But according to Anderson, Jackson cared more about greeting his fans than prioritizing his own safety.
Michael allegedly asked his attorney to dig up the Arvizo family’s ‘skeletons’
In the doc’s third and final part, Jackson family attorney Brian Oxman alleges that Jackson asked him to dig up dirt on the Arvizo family, who took the stand against Jackson.
“Michael told me, ‘That’s your job, Brian. Your job is to find out what really happened here,’” Oxman says. “‘I need to find every skeleton in their closet [and] dirt on their shoes.’”
During the trial, Jackson’s team denied he molested Gavin and argued the teenager’s family were con artists who wanted to extort money from the music icon.
“Michael Jackson: The Verdict” is streaming on Netflix.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-330-0226.
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