Michael Jackson’s nephew is raising money to fund a documentary series about his uncle, in what he has described as an attempt to defend the star and his memory.
Taj Jackson has launched an online fundraising campaign, which has received $25,630 (£19,460) so far out of a $777,000 ( £591,382) goal.
The younger Jackson says he wants to make the documentary series in response to Leaving Neverland, a documentary film premiering on Friday morning at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.
A description of Leaving Neverland on the Sundance Film Festival’s website reads as such: “In separate but parallel stories that echo one another, two boys were each befriended by Jackson, who invited them into his singular and wondrous world.
“Seduced by the singer’s fairy-tale existence and enthralled by their relationship with him, both boys’ families were blind to the manipulation and abuse that he would ultimately subject them to.”
While the team behind the film hasn’t confirmed the identity of the two subjects, they have been widely reported to be Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who said in 2013 and 2014 respectively that Michael Jackson had abused them when they were children.
Representatives for the late star have spoken out against Leaving Neverland, calling it “yet another lurid production in an outrageous and pathetic attempt to exploit and cash in on Michael Jackson”.
Taj Jackson wrote in the description of his fundraiser: “Once again, we have to defend Michael Jackson’s name and legacy from vicious and calculated lies.”
He said he wanted to make an “explosive documentary series” to “conclusively destroy decades of salacious myths” related to his uncle.
