In the bombshellMichael JacksondocumentaryLeaving Neverland,Wade Robsonrecalls the last time he saw the late music icon — whom he claims molested him for years as a boy — beforeJackson’s deathat the age of 50 in 2009.
“I was in Vegas for about six months, and I was choreographing a Cirque du Soleil show,” Robson said. “At that point, Michael was living in Vegas with his kids. I wanted him to come see the show and I asked him to write some words for the dancers in the show, some words of inspiration before opening night.”
Michael Jackson and Wade Robson.HBO
As they were making plans to get together, Robson said one of the things Jackson kept asking him was to “make sure you bring some wine.”
“So this was a new dynamic, which I liked as well, you know me trying to have this normal experience with him,” Robson said. “Like, wow, I’m going to be able to sit there with Michael and have a glass of wine and talk about real stuff.”
Wade Robson.
Before heading to Jackson’s house, Robson said he and his wife, Amanda, went to the grocery store to pick up hot dogs and a couple bottles of wine. As soon as they got there, Robson said one of the first things Jackson asked was, “Did you bring the wine?”
“We had some of those larger red plastic cups and he grabbed one of those and just filled it up to the brim with white wine and just chugged it down and kept going back and just filling it up,” Robson said. “This was my first experience of ever seeing him drink at all. It was nice and we would crack some jokes, there was still that feeling of reminiscing about our relationship from the past. We watched a movie with the kids and he just kept drinking.”
“We’re just there with the kids and it’s getting late now, it’s like 10 [p.m.] or something like that,” Robson said. “So Amanda and I are like, ‘What do we do?’ I remember asking the kids, ‘Do you want to go check on your dad to see if he’s okay?’ And they were just like, ‘Nah, he’s fine.’ It seemed like it was nothing out of the ordinary for them. That was the last time I saw him.”
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Paris, Prince and Blanket have yet to directly address the documentary. On Tuesday, Parisposted a short clip of herselfdancing with a pal to Bob Seger’s hit song “Old Time Rock and Roll.” In a tweet posted shortly after the video, she wrote: “don’t take life too seriously, life already takes itself serious enough as it is.”
During an interview with Gayle King forCBS This Morningthat aired on Wednesday, Jackson’s brothers Tito, Marlon, and Jackie Jackson, as well as Jackson’s nephew, Taj Jackson, said that they had not seen the documentary.
“I know my brother,” Jackie, 67, said. “I know what he stood for. What he was all about. Bringing the world together. Making kids happy. That’s the kind of person he was.”
Throughout the rest of the film, Robson goes into detail about his relationship with Jackson, whom he claims molested him over a seven-year period starting in 1990. The Jackson estate hassued HBOandslammed the documentary, calling it “another rehash of dated and discredited allegations.”
The lawsuit didn’t stop HBO from going ahead with the project, which the network addressed in a statement: “Despite the desperate lengths taken to undermine the film, our plans remain unchanged. HBO will move forward with the airing ofLeaving Neverland, the two-part documentary, on March 3 and 4. This will allow everyone the opportunity to assess the film and the claims in it for themselves.”
Robson met Jackson when he was 5 years old after he won a shopping mall dancing competition in his native Australia. The prize led to a meeting with Jackson backstage at his concert in Brisbane.
By 1990, when Robson was about 8 years old, the family came into contact with Jackson again during a vacation in Los Angeles. Robson alleged Jackson convinced Robson’s mother to let him stay over alone with the singer while the rest of his family went on a trip to the Grand Canyon.
Michael Jackson with Wade Robson.Dan Reed/HBO
Parts one and two ofLeaving Neverlandare now streaming on HBO.
source: people.com
