Lawsuits filed by Scarlett Pavlovich against Neil Gaiman and Amanda Palmer have have now all currently come to an end. Three different lawsuits have been dismissed due to technical reasons with the latest, and final one, this past Friday.
Pavlovich filed a lawsuit against Gaiman and Palmer in Wisconsin in February 2025. Gaiman was accused of sexual assault on multiple occasions while Pavlovich worked as a nanny. A lawsuit was also filed against Palmer in Massachusetts and New York at the same time as the Wisconsin one. Gaiman has a home in Wisconsin and Palmer lives in Massachusetts.
The original lawsuit against Gaiman and Palmer included claims of sodomy rape, describing Pavlovich as a “slave,” and more. Palmer is named in the suit for “procuring and presenting” the plaintiff to Gaiman.
Each of those lawsuits have now ended.
Pavlovich dropped the New York lawsuit in May against Palmer because Palmer had moved from New York to Massachusetts. That was granted in June.
The Wisconsin lawsuit against Palmer was dropped by Pavlovich in May 2025. The rest of the case was dismissed by the judge stating it was the wrong jurisdiction and the case needed to be pursued in New Zealand.
Now, the Massachusetts lawsuit has been thrown out for the same reason.
It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything anywhere, but I didn’t want to let any more time go without thanking everyone for all your kind messages of support over the last year and a half.
I’ve learned firsthand how effective a smear campaign can be, so to be clear:
The allegations against me are completely and simply untrue. There are emails, text messages and video evidence that flatly contradict them.
These allegations, especially the really salacious ones, have been spread and amplified by people who seemed a lot more interested in outrage and getting clicks on headlines rather than whether things had actually happened or not. (They didn’t.)
One thing that’s kept me going through all this madness is the conviction that the truth would, eventually, come out. I expected that when the allegations were first made there would be journalism, and that the journalism would take the (mountains of) evidence into account, and was astonished to see how much of the reporting was simply an echo chamber, and how the actual evidence was dismissed or ignored.
I was a journalist once, and I have enormous respect for journalists, so I’ve been hugely heartened by the meticulous fact and evidence-based investigative writing of one particular journalist, whom some of you recently brought to my attention, who writes under the name of TechnoPathology.
I’ve had no contact with TechnoPathology. But I’d like to thank them personally for actually looking at the evidence and reporting what they found, which is not what anyone else had done.
If you are curious about what they’ve uncovered so far, the clickable link in my bio takes you to really good investigative reporting.
It’s been a strange, turbulent and occasionally nightmarish year and a half, but I took my own advice (when things get tough, make good art) and once I was done with making television I went back to doing something else I love even more: writing.
I thought it was going to be a fairly short project when I began it, but it’s looking like it’s going to be the biggest thing I’ve done since American Gods. It’s already much longer than The Ocean at the End of the Lane, and it’s barely finished wiping its boots and hanging up its coat.
And I spend half of every month being a full-time Dad, and that remains the best bit of my life.
It’s a rough time for the world. I look at what’s happening on the home front and internationally, and I worry; and I am still convinced there are more good people out there than the other kind.
Thank you again to so many of you for your belief in my innocence and your support for my work.
It has meant the world to me.
Neil
The ‘Neil Gaiman Is Innocent’ weaves a theory that the creator was targeted by an anti-trans conspiracy and that the allegations engaged in antisemitic tropes.
Numerous publishers stopped releasing projects based on Gaiman’s work including Dark Horse an DC Comics. While the second season of The Sandman was released by Netflix, other projects were put on the shelf.
As we stated in our original article, Gaiman’s name kept resurfacing as a person expected to be hit with scandal like this, though when pressed, we were never provided details. It’s unlikely the latest statement by Gaiman, nor the Substack account, will sway public opinion.
Neil Gaiman is seeking more than $500,000 from Caroline Wallner who accused the writer of sexual misconduct. The accused acts took place while Wallner lived and worked on Gaiman’s Woodstock property.
Gaiman has denied he abused Wallner and has said that it was she who initiated sexual encounters. But, Vulture reports that in 2021 Gaiman paid Wallner $275,000 in exchange for signing an extensive nondisclosure agreement that prevented her from suing Gaiman or telling anyone about her experiences.
Gaiman has filed a demand for arbitration accusing Wallner of breaching her NDA by sharing her story. According to Gaiman, Wallner violated the confidentiality and NDA provisions. The $500,000 is the settlement amount plus attorney’s fees as well as $50,000 for each interview she’s given.
Wallner earlier filed a claim for arbitration against Gaiman accusing him of breaching his end of the NDA stating that his lawyer held onto videos, photos, and text messages sent during her and Gaiman’s time together. The NDA included a stipulation that those materials would be destroyed.
Wallner has also been attempt to get the NDA voided. Courts over the years have taken steps to limited the use of NDAs to cover up allegations of sexual misconduct though that’s a difficult battle.
We’re getting to the lawsuit news a bit late but didn’t want to miss it as it’s a very big deal. It’s been months of horrific allegations against Neil Gaiman but the creator is being taken to court on allegations of rape, human trafficking, and more. His (ex)-wife Amanda Palmer is also named in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit was filed in a Wisconsin court by Scarlett Pavlovich and the 28-page nine claim lawsuit includes claims of sodomy rape, describing Pavlovich as a “slave,” and more. Palmer is named in the suit for “procuring and presenting” the plaintiff to Gaiman.
The lawsuit is seeking at least $1 million in a jury trial. Pavolich is one of seven women who have come forward with stories concerning Gaiman.
Gaiman has been dropped by his representation and had comics, shows, and more cancelled or paused due to the allegations.
Marc Bernardin, the writer of Anansi Boysannounced on social media that the rest of the series nor a trade will be released by Dark Horse. The announcement comes after Vulture‘s explosive report into allegations of sexual misconduct and abuse by Neil Gaiman.
Anansi Boys was created by Gaiman with writing by Bernardin with art by Shawn Martinbrough, color by Chris Sotomayor, lettering by Jim Campbell, covers by David Mack.
Last week, Anansi Boys 7 hit stands. It will be the last issue. Dark Horse will not release a trade.
I am incredibly proud of the work we did on the book. @smartinbrough.bsky.social’s lines were fantastic, @sotocolor.bsky.social’s hues were extraordinary, @david-mack.bsky.social slayed the covers.
But all of that pales.
Anansi Boys is about two brothers, twins. One is meek, timid, like a flopsy, set-upon puppy. The other brother is narcissistic, hedonistic, governed by nothing other than his own pursuit of sensation and pleasure. They seem so different, but they are very much flip sides of the same coin. Literally.
I never gave too much thought about that. Until now.
My heart breaks for the survivors and any pain seeing these books on the shelves might have caused.
In our coverage of the allegations, it was noted that there had seem to be a quiet distancing by publishers from Gaiman since accusations began last year. Anansi Boys had just a few more issues to go along with the collection. Over at DC Comics, the publisher seems to have been distancing itself for some time with no new projects announced for the Sandman Universe and the recent John Constantine: Dead in America having connection to that stripped from its trade dressing for its collection.
Dark Horse takes seriously the allegations against Neil Gaiman and we are no longer publishing his works. Confirming that the Anansi Boys comic series and collected volume have been cancelled.
(W) Neil Gaiman, Marc Bernardin (A) Shawn Martinbrough (CA) David Mack In Shops: Jan 15, 2025 SRP: $3.99
It’s brother vs. brother as Fat Charlie confronts Spider about kissing Rosie-and demands that his mysterious god-like sibling get out of his house and his life. Spider responds by moving in: to Fat Charlie’s spare room and on to sleeping with Fat Charlie’s fiancée. Oh, and Grahame Coates has the police looking into Fat Charlie.
This past summer, numerous accusations came forth regarding celebrated and award-winning writer Neil Gaiman. Rumors have swirled for some time about the writer, with one creator saying to me “I wonder when the damn will break for him” during MeToo. We never were able to turn up any specifics, only rumors, but Vulture has released an article full of graphic allegations including sexual assault painting a picture of a man with no respect for boundaries.
The article goes into detail of numerous encounters Gaiman has had with employees, fans, and more over many years. Allegations mainly take place in Gaiman’s 40s and involve women primarily in their mid-20s, often vulnerable, and according to Vulture, their stories are similar with evidence of the actions including diary entries, texts, emails, messages, and police correspondence.
While Gaiman is generally described as “demure” at first, each of his victims go into detail of a man who was anything but with his demanding to be called “master,” elements of BDSM, and forced sexual interactions including rape.
Gaiman, through his representatives, has defended some of the interactions stating: “sexual degradation, bondage, domination, sadism, and masochism may not be to everyone’s taste, but between consenting adults, BDSM is lawful,” which can be interpreted as an admission at least some occurred. What Gaiman and his representatives ignore is the consensual aspects of BDSM. That’s the difference between acts involving BDSM and outright abuse.
Vulture goes into some detail of Gaiman’s upbringing in the Church of Scientology. Scientology has been rife with stories of abuse by its members as well as covering up such abuse. But, overall, you get a sense that his was a life where excess was fueled by others.
Vulture also examines his and Amanda Palmer’s relationship including bringing others into it and eventually their falling out over his infidelity and issues he was having concerning his own trauma. But overall, it paints a picture of a man who does not respect lines stated by others and took advantage of his position taking advantage of others. Gaiman and Palmer are still battling in their divorce and Gaiman’s representatives allege that Palmer is a “major force,” driving these stories. Even if she’s the reason they’re coming out, the accusations are crimes that have been covered up for years.
The accusations have had a recent impact on Gaiman’s career. Good Omens‘ return was cut down for its third season. Gaiman left the series in October 2024 with production halted in September 2024 after the initial allegations were released. The third season was reduced to one single 90-minute episode. As far as comics, Dark Horse is currently publishing a comic adaptation of Anansi Boys which was initially released in June 2024 and has two more issues being released in the next few months. DC seems to have seen the writing on the wall for quite some time as the relaunched “Sandman Universe” has seen few releases over the past year after an initial heavy push. Running for six years, there were 14 releases with just one released in 2024 and two series in each of the two years preceding that. John Constantine: Dead in America #11, the finale of that series, was released in December 2024. When the trade collection is released in February, it looks like its branding of “Sandman Universe” has been removed from the trade dress.
(W) Neil Gaiman, Marc Bernardin (A) Shawn Martinbrough (CA) David Mack In Shops: Nov 27, 2024 SRP: $3.99
Fat Charlie is forced to deal with the fallout of Spider’s day pretending to be him – the chaos he caused at Fat Charlie’s job at the Grahame Coats Agency as well as the kiss-filled complications with Spider and Rosie. Daisy (the woman Fat Charlie woke up with after the evening of wine, women, and song) is more than meets the eye. Plus: A classic tale of young Anansi brewing his particular brand of mischief.
This is a column that focuses on something or some things from the comic book sphere of influence that may not get the credit and recognition it deserves. Whether that’s a list of comic book movies, ongoing comics, or a set of stories featuring a certain character. The columns may take the form of a bullet pointed list, or a slightly longer thinkpiece – there’s really no formula for this other than whether the things being covered are Underrated in some way.
This week: Snow, Glass Apples.
We all know the story of Snow White at this point. Whether that’s from the Disney version, the original Grimm Brothers story, or one of the other iterations released over the years, I would be surprised if you didn’t have some level of familiarity with the story, so I won’t bother to recap or copy and paste a synopsis here because it’s ultimately a moot point.
Neil Gaiman clearly assumes the same, as Snow, Glass, Apples builds upon that innate knowledge of the fairytale by telling the story from the perspective of the Evil Queen. Originally conceived as a short story in 1994, the book I read this morning was adapted from that story, and fleshed out with illustrations by the fantastically talented Colleen Doran.
I’m not entirely sure if I’d classify this as a graphic novel or an illustrated novel, and ultimately it’s a moot point because I enjoyed the shit out of how the words and art interplay across the page.
There’s more of a classic art style to the book, and while it wouldn’t be my cup of tea in, say, a Wolverine story, it’s perfectly suited to the reinterpretation of a classic fairytale.
I featured Snow, Glass, Apple this week not because I think Neil Gaiman or Colleen Doran are an underrated pair of creators, but because this is the kind of book that can easily be missed or skipped over by those who don’t feel the strike of curiosity as they see the cover, and that’s a shame. This is a solid book, and I’m glad my LCS added it to the list of things that they recommended to me.
Join us next week when we look at something else that is, for whatever reason, Underrated.
(W) Neil Gaiman, Marc Bernardin (A) Shawn Martinbrough (CA) David Mack In Shops: Nov 06, 2024 SRP: $3.99
As Fat Charlie nurses an epic hangover, and deals with the mystery woman who shared his bed after the night of mournful reverie, Spider heads to the Grahame Coats Agency to fill in for his brother. There, Spider gets into the kind of trouble only a trickster scion could muster – trouble that poor Fat Charlie will have to deal with.
