It’s a movie starring his nephew in the lead role, approved by his estate, and by all accounts it just feels like an attempt to whitewash him. This is a man who was accused of being a serial child molester, settled with a family out of court for $25 million just to avoid a trial (Chandler), and openly admitted he slept in the same bed as kids while he was an adult (Bashir interview), among other things. I don’t really see what there is to debate.
Anything pointing this out gets backlash on movie-related subreddits, which I find wild. It makes me wonder, if Epstein could sing and dance, would he have gotten a biopic too? Would people be defending him like this?
I agree that it’s not fair to compare Michael Jackson to Epstein. Although both engaged in illegal activities, a 16 year old at least has the ability to say, “No, I will not give you a handjob for $200.” The seven and eight year olds Michael abused didn’t have the ability to walk away.
It’s similar to murder charges. Although a highschooler is legally a child, they are still culpable enough for their actions to be tried as an adult. The children Michael targeted would not. The worse part of this situation is that parents voluntarily gave him their children. They should have been tried and investigated.