Leaving Neverland was released on Channel 4 in Ireland and the U.K this week, after causing controversy over in the U.S with fans being split down the middle, not knowing what to believe.
One thing that has been left on everyone’s mind, apart from the shock of the detailed incidents during the childhood of Safechuck and Robson during their time spent with Jackson, was the part of the documentary where Wade Robson mentioned Macaulay Culkin, saying that he ‘replaced’ him in Michael’s life.
“Macaulay was where I was in my previous trips, right by Michael’s side every moment… Now I was kind of on the sideline as far as being Michael’s friend and being his favorite and that was really confusing.”
Macaulay did not appear in the documentary, but it was made clear at the end of part one that he has always stated that his and Michael’s relationship was never sexual, and their friendship was based on an understanding of childhood fame.
Of course, we can’t help but wonder if any of this is true.
Macaulay played an important part in Michael’s trails in 2005, insisting that their friendship was never what others claimed their relationship was with Michael. He played a key part as a witness in the trial, defending Michael.
During the trial, he said the claims were absolutely ridiculous, and when asked about claims that Michael’s personal chef and maid made saying that they witness abuse in their relationship, Macaulay said:
“I couldn’t believe that, first of all, these people were saying these things or—let alone that it was out there and people were thinking that kind of thing about me.”
“Whenever I was at Neverland, my little brother was kind of always tagging along with me, so he was usually anywhere I was.”
Now that Michael’s history with younger boys has resurfaced, all eyes are on Macaulay to see what he has to say, 14 years after the trial.
Before the release of the documentary, the actor appeared on Inside of You podcast with Michael Rosenbaum where they discussed a number of thing from candycorn and colour blindness, to his relationship with Jackson.
“It’s almost easy say that (our friendship) was weird or whatever, but it wasn’t. At the end of the day, we were friends… It’s one of my friendships that people questions, only because of the fact that he was the most famous person in the world.”
Macaulay insists that they bonded over shared experiences growing up in the limelight,
“Nobody had any idea what I was going through, but he was like ‘Yes, I’ve been through the exact same thing. He wanted to make sure that I wasn’t alone in that.”
The documentary follows the stories of Wade Robson and James Safechuck during their time spent with Michael Jackson. If you missed it, it is available to watch on All 4.
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