As the Michael Jackson biopic continues to dominate the box office, a new docuseries looking back at his wild 2005 child sex abuse trial is coming to Netflix on June 3.
Michael Jackson: The Verdict revisits the dramatic courtroom events that saw the King of Pop front and centre in one of the most sensational legal sagas ever.
Jackson was charged with conspiracy; four counts of a lewd act upon a minor child; attempting to commit a lewd act upon a minor child; four counts of administering an intoxicating agent to assist in the commission of a felony; and four counts of providing alcoholic beverages to persons under the age of 21.
After seven days of jury deliberation, he was not guilty on all charges.
Created by showrunner David Herman and directed by Nick Green, Michael Jackson: The Verdict “dissects the case against Jackson from the perspectives of both the prosecution and the defense.”
The doc features new interviews with “participants involved in the trial, including jurors, as well as media figures who were inside the courtroom and observed the case unfold firsthand.”
“It has been 20 years since the trial of Michael Jackson in which he was found not guilty. Yet, to this day, controversy still rages,” the filmmakers said in a statement. “No cameras were allowed in court, and so the public’s view of the facts at the time were filtered by commentators and presented piecemeal. It was time to take a forensic look at the trial as a whole.”
“The aim was to take the audience inside the proceedings and only speak to eyewitnesses who played a part in those events,” they added. “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.”
Watch the trailer below.