Although the special had not yet aired at the time of Michael Jackson estate’s release of their statement, they stated that they believe The Last Days of Michael Jackson to be “another crass and unauthorized attempt to exploit the life, music and image of Michael Jackson without respect for Michael’s legacy, intellectual property rights or his children.” Ouch.
The Last Days of Michael Jackson is not sponsored or approved by Jackson’s estate, as the estate made explicitly clear in a statement regarding the ABC special.
According to Michael Jackson’s estate, ABC used a copyrighted photo and silhouette image that belongs to the estate in promotional material for the special, and ABC News removed the materials after estate attorneys indicated that the intellectual property rights were being infringed upon.