SINCE the tragic death of their superstar dad, Michael Jackson’s three kids have dealt with abuse allegations, mental health issues and endless legal wrangles over the massive fortune he left behind.
Now the famous trio have something to celebrate after Prince, 28, announced his engagement to partner Molly Schirmang on Instagram, sharing the news with a pic of them kissing and meeting his grandma, Michael’s mother Katherine Jackson, now 95.
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Attaching Jacko’s hit I Just Can’t Stop Loving You to the post, Prince was no doubt wishing his father could have been there to see him find his happy ever after.
It’s a moment of happy respite for the King of Pop’s children – Prince, 28, Paris, 27 and 23-year-old Bigi (formerly Blanket) – amid the legal fights over the singer’s $2billion estate which have ripped the family apart.
In his will Jackson, who died at 50 in 2009, allocated 40 per cent of his estate to his three children, 40 per cent to his mother Katherine, and the remaining 20 per cent to charities close to his heart – excluding the rest of the family.
Despite the massive debts at the time of his death, estimated at $500million, the estate is now worth around $2billion thanks to music royalties, merchandise sales, a hit musical and the $600million deal with Sony.
But since 2021 the money has been frozen amid legal battles with the IRS and bitter court wrangles among the family themselves.
And the children have found themselves having to fend off lawyers and family members, all after a slice of the Jackson pie.
That’s all while having to deal with a host of turmoil in their own lives in the wake of their father’s tragic death – not least the damning accusations of sexual abuse levied against him.
Prince acknowledged the accusations in a 2016 interview with Vanity Fair, saying that the siblings got “bombarded with everything” after their father’s death.
“It was a shock,” he added.“It all came at once. But [we] learned how to deal with it by just kind of ignoring it.”
Throughout their legal troubles, and rumours of fallouts within the wider family, Prince has often been seen as the one to act as both mediator, and glue keeping them stuck together.
Upscale living
Over the last few years, Michael’s eldest son had a few goes breaking into showbiz, including guest hosting Entertainment Tonight, but later admitted he “didn’t get that gene”.
Instead, he followed in his father’s activism footsteps, and now runs the Heal Los Angeles Foundation, which aims to combat child hunger, homelessness, and abuse.
He’s now also living in the upscale Rancho Palos Verdes neighbourhood in California, in a property which, according to Variety, would have cost him around £1.7million.
“We have such a close relationship,” Prince also said of his feelings towards his siblings.
“We’re kind of all on that same level where my sister has her strengths, and my brother has his strengths, and where I’m not as strong in certain areas, they compliment me in that way,” he added.
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Younger sister Paris, meanwhile, bought a £1.6million eco-friendly “hippie mansion” in California in 2017, before upgrading to a £3million home formerly owned by Rock Hudson.
She’s also faced much more public struggles – admitting that she’d attempted suicide “multiple times” by the age of 15.
The 27-year-old model and singer has also struggled with addiction to alcohol and heroin.
Youngest of all Bigi, meanwhile, is perhaps best known for his original nickname, Blanket (though he was born Prince II) – and for the moment his dad dangled him as a baby over a fifth-floor hotel balcony back in 2002.
He always thought that the name Blanket sounded so stupid
Anonymous source
Allegedly resenting his father for the name, he changed it to Bigi in 2014.
“He always thought that the name Blanket sounded so stupid,” a source alleged.
Unlike, Prince and Paris, who were born to Jackson’s ex-wife Debbie Rowe, Bigi was born via surrogacy.
He’s also currently working as an actor and director, but – like his siblings – was able to use some of his father’s fortune to purchase a £2million California mansion the moment he turned 18.
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Family battles
But being the youngest of the three hasn’t stopped him from getting involved in the battle for his dad’s billions.
In March 2024, Bigi sued his own grandmother, Katherine, who was 93 at the time, in a bust up over the sale of half of Michael Jackson’s music catalogue to Sony Music – for the eye-watering sum of $600million.
The deal means the value of all his music could be as much as $1.2billion – which, according to Billboard, could be the largest valuation ever of a musician’s musical assets.
But despite the sale being heralded as a success, it later emerged that Katherine had been trying to block the deal.
Katherine wanted to wait and rake in more cash – while the executors were keen to take advantage of favourable market conditions.
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It’s said Katherine argued the sale would be against her son’s wishes.
To cover her $500,000 legal fees, Katherine’s side insisted the cost should be paid from the estate, which Bigi disputed – launching a law suit to recover the money.
However, according to sources, not everything is as it might seem at first glance.
After all, when Michael died in 2009 – when Bigi was just seven – it was Katherine who took the lead in looking after him.
So would a grandson really turn against the loving grandma who raised him?
In fact, Bigi’s camp claimed the legal move was actually to protect her – and to stop the extended family “using” Katherine to plunder the inheritance.
Bigi is trying to protect his grandmother, in the same manner that Michael did
Inside
“Bigi isn’t going against his grandmother,” a source close to the family told the New York Post.
“Bigi is trying to protect his grandmother, in the same manner that Michael did, which is to protect her from the Jacksons.”
The source also alleged that some relatives were getting money from the trust, via the soft-hearted matriarch.
“It’s the same sh**,” they added.
“Now, instead of letting Mrs Jackson live out her years in relative peace, you still have certain family members using this elderly woman to get more money – and it’s none of their business, as usual.”
A source close to the estate says Katherine has received more than $55 million in payouts since the singer’s death.
“Virtually no request of Mrs. Jackson for her care or maintenance has been declined,” recent filings revealed.
Legacy woes
Looking back at the Jackson family’s history when it comes to his will, Bigi’s move might not be so surprising.
Despite the King of Pop’s estate being $500million in debt when he died, his immense fame and huge catalogue of beloved songs meant everyone knew that there would be money to be made.
While Michael was keen to provide for his mother, Katherine, and his three children, he made a point of excluding his siblings and father Joseph, who he claimed was abusive, from his will.
Joe has always denied the allegations.
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Many in the Jackson clan had been receiving allowances from the pop star for years – something which came to an abrupt end with his death.
The extended family’s lawsuits were thrown out, but the legacy of these money-grabbing conflicts has hung over the Jackson name like a dark cloud.
According to the insider, it’s not Katie – the family’s nickname for Katherine – that’s leading the battle but lawyer John Branca and accountant John McClain, who were named executors of the estate in the will.
Whenever [the children] need anything, the Estate works with them to ensure that they are very well taken care of
Court filings
They said, at the time of the suit: “Although her name is on the documents. Katie is 93 years old and long ago gave up any real fight against the estate.
“But some members of the family haven’t given up going against [Branca and McClain] even though Katie still takes great care of the entire family through money that comes in from the estate. You’ve got this faction, after 15 years, that’s still angry because a family member isn’t calling the shots.”
£700m tax bill
But the family aren’t the only ones circling.
In May 2024, it emerged that all three children and Katherine had been blocked from receiving any financial distributions until a dispute with the US government taxman – the IRS – was settled.
The dispute with the taxman arose after an audit of the estate was deemed it to be undervalued and the IRS demanded $700m to settle the bill.
While the estate won when this went to trial in 2021, the valuation did not include the value of Mijac – the singer’s music publishing catalogue.
The IRS has since asked for the value of this to be taken into accounts but until this is determined, the estate’s value has not yet been “finalised” for tax purposes – meaning the money held in trusts for the kids, estimated at $150m each, cannot be released.
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Not that they’re having to sell off their multi-million dollar properties, because the family members are still able to receive payments through an allowance.
A statement from Jackson’s estate also described the amount of money given to support Katherine and the children as “substantial”.
It added: “The Estate has a very cooperative relationship with Michael’s children and whenever they need anything, the Estate works with them to ensure that they are very well taken care of, just as Michael would have wanted.”
Ex-wife claims
Paris, meanwhile, has not shied away from bringing in the lawyers – even if it’s against other lawyers.
Over the last few months, Michael’s second-born has raised concerns over “irregular payments” being made by the estate.
Paris has now filed a legal motion requesting a judge intervene – and it pulled no punches.
A group of closely-knit, highly-compensated lawyers is exploiting the Executors’ lack of oversight to skim money from the Estate…
Legal filing
The motion summarised: “…the present records suggest a group of closely-knit, highly-compensated lawyers is exploiting the Executors’ lack of oversight to skim money from the Estate, in plain view.”
However, Jonathan Steinsapir, an attorney for the estate, strongly denied the claims and called them “baseless and defamatory”.
It also emerged that the payments may, in fact, have been due to “issues” with one of Jackson’s ex-wives – to use the words of Branca and McClain.
A legal filing from February detailed work that was “addressing issues relating to Michael Jackson’s former spouse.”
It was not specified which spouse was involved in the dispute but Paris asked the executors to submit paperwork related to legal fees they requested be paid to third-party firms between 2019 and 2023.
Jacko was married to Lisa Marie Presley from 1994 to 1996 and she passed away in 2023. Debbie Rowe – the mother of Prince and Paris – was married to the singer from 1996 to 2000.
Given the immense wealth that continues to be generated by Jackson’s estate, legal threats and disputes may never be far away, especially given Katherine’s older age.
But despite the shadow it has cast, all three children are – for now – seemingly united in carrying on what their father would want them to do.
