X-Men '97 creator now accusing Disney of "gaslighting," "illegal conduct"
A lawyer for X-Men '97's Beau DeMayo has gone on the offensive today, accusing Disney of "illegal conduct" in regards to his termination
Image: Disney+
Safe to say, we think, that the Walt Disney Corporation has now entered into open war with X-Men ’97 creator and writer Beau DeMayo—not always the most comfortable of statuses when you and your co-combatant might soon be on the hook for an Emmy together. But after things quickly heated up between DeMayo and his former employers last night (with the writer alleging that he had had his credits stripped off the show’s second season because he posted Pride-focused fan-art of himself on social media, and the company firing back by claiming they fired him months ago after an internal investigation found “egregious” issues with his conduct), DeMayo went back on the offensive today.
Or, at least, his lawyer did—but retaining Bryan Freedman, who’s well known for fighting wrongful termination suits with the studios, and who’s represented folks like Quentin Tarantino, Kevin Spacey, Julia Roberts, and more—could be seen as an aggressive move all its own. Freedman issued a statement today (via Variety) in which he pulled absolutely zero punches, accusing Disney of “bullying and illegal conduct,” and claiming he intends to deploy “detailed examples which we will roll out in detail one by one” to establish a “repeated illegal pattern” on Disney’s part. (No, we don’t know why the detailed examples need to have a release schedule akin to prestige TV.) Freedman also gets in some accusations of gaslighting, calling the company’s behavior part of its standard playbook: “Family friendly on the outside, but secretly attempting to plant illegal unconscionable items in contracts that silence the truth and stop the employee/customer from asserting basic constitutional rights.” (We’re guessing that has something to do with Disney saying it cut DeMayo’s credits because he allegedly breached his severance agreement with the company, although the “customer” bit feels machine-precisioned to make us think about that ridiculous Disney+ lawsuit it found itself embroiled in this week.) Freedman ends his statement (which you can read in full below), by asserting that “Beau DeMayo wants nothing from Marvel/Disney except the truth. He will bravely tell the truth. So will I. Stand by.” So far, Disney hasn’t fired back in response to this latest salvo—but since it hasn’t yet taken the nuclear option of revealing what was in those internal investigations it keeps waving around, god knows they’ve still go ammo left to unleash. Uglier before it gets nicer, guaranteed.
Freedman’s statement, in full:
Having much experience with Disney, the playbook is always the same. Family friendly on the outside, but secretly attempting to plant illegal unconscionable items in contracts that silence the truth and stop the employee/customer from asserting basic constitutional rights. As we will explain through detailed examples which we will roll out in detail one by one, Disney’s model is very clear and a repetitive illegal pattern. Once it gets challenged or exposed, the gaslighting and redirection of the blame toward anyone willing to tell the truth starts through an international well oiled publicity machine. The problem for Disney is that when they go up against someone who has concrete evidence of this happening over 100 times, many of which have led to them settling hundreds of cases if not thousands to try and continue to control critics, employees and even lawyers who sue them. The problem for them is that I have the evidence and clients willing to be truthful and they know it. These are actually facts not argument or conjecture. Over the next few months, with the brave help of those who have been illegally silenced, retaliated for simply telling the truth and then destroyed for it, one by one this bullying and illegal conduct will be exposed to the government. Beau DeMayo wants nothing from Marvel/Disney except the truth. He will bravely tell the truth. So will I. Stand by.