Michael Jackson wanted children with Lisa Marie Presley almost from the beginning of their marriage.
Years later, Lisa told Oprah Winfrey there had been “quite a bit” of pressure to have a baby after they married in May 1994. She did not say she was completely against the idea. In fact, she admitted she wanted one too.
Her hesitation came from something much darker.
Lisa already had two children, Riley and Benjamin, and said she kept looking ahead to what might happen if her marriage to Michael collapsed.
Her biggest fear was a custody battle.
“I don’t ever want to get into a custody battle with him,” she later told Oprah.
Lisa said she wanted to be certain that she and Michael were truly stable and united before bringing a child into such an intense and unusual situation.
Then another name entered the conversation: Debbie Rowe.
Lisa later claimed Michael would tell her that if she would not have his baby, Debbie was willing to do it. In her 2003 Playboy interview, Lisa remembered Michael bringing up Rowe as an alternative and admitted that it felt like pressure rather than reassurance.
The subject became a source of arguments between them.
Lisa Marie Talks About Wanting Children With Michael
The clip revisits Lisa Marie’s explanation that she did want children with Michael, but feared ending up in a custody fight if the relationship fell apart.
Lisa filed for divorce in January 1996.
Later that year, Debbie Rowe became pregnant with Michael’s first child. Lisa told Oprah she viewed the timing as partly “retaliatory”, because Michael knew how reluctant she had been to have a baby before she felt secure in the marriage. That was Lisa’s interpretation of his actions, not something Michael publicly confirmed.
Debbie later testified that Michael had been deeply upset about not having children and that becoming a father was extremely important to him.
The sad part is that Lisa did not say she never wanted Michael’s child.
She said she wanted one too. She was simply afraid that if their marriage ended, a baby would tie them together in a battle neither of them could easily escape.