Key players who were in the courtroom for The People v. Michael Joseph Jackson will revisit the case in the new Netflix docuseries Michael Jackson: The Verdict.
The streamer released a trailer for the three-part series on Wednesday, May 20.
The video shows police cruisers outside the King of Pop’s Neverland Ranch, before cutting to crowds of fans voicing support for Jackson at a courthouse in Santa Barbara County, California.
In 2003, the legendary singer was arrested and charged with multiple counts of child molestation. Prosecutors accused the superstar of molesting a 13-year-old boy at Neverland, which Jackson denied.
The criminal trial began in 2005. “We believed he was a criminal and he was able to get away with that because of his fame and celebrity,” a prosecutor says in the trailer.
Investigative reporter Diane Dimond adds, “He lured young boys to Neverland.”
But Jackson attorney Thomas Mesereau says the alleged victim and his family were looking to money. “It was our opinion that they began to come up with these allegations to get a payday,” Mesereau says.
Witnesses for the defense included former child actor Macaulay Culkin. On June 13, 2005, Jackson was found not guilty on all counts.
The video shows the “Thriller” singer celebrating by standing on top of a car and waving to fans. A juror appears in the docuseries and says prosecutors did not prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.
The series comes from Candle True Stories. Executive producers include Fiona Stourton, David Herman, James Goldston. Nick Green directed the series.
“It has been 20 years since the trial… to this day, controversy still rages,” Green told Netflix blog Tudum. “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.”
Michael Jackson: The Verdict begins streaming June 3, 2026 on Netflix.
The release of the trailer comes as the Michael Jackson biopic, Michael, returned to No. 1 at the domestic box office over the weekend. The authorized film opened on April 24 to fanfare but poor reviews from critics.
The drama stars the late singer’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, in the title role. To date, the film has earned more than $709 million worldwide. It also jump-started sales of Jackson’s music.
Watch the trailer below for Michael Jackson: The Verdict.
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