The New York magazine collected testimony from alleged victims reporting repeated rapes and assaults. The British writer refutes all these accusations.
British author Neil Gaiman, to whom we owe Coraline, American Gods or even Stardust, is accused by eight women of sexual assault, reports the New York Magazine, Monday January 13, in an article entitled “ There Is No Safe Word ». The first accusations had already been collected last summer by Tortoise Media, where five women testified against the writer who sold more than 50 million books worldwide.
In this article from New York Magazineeight women testify openly for the first time. Among them, Scarlett Pavlovich, who had already spoken anonymously in the Tortoise Media podcast. The latter was 22 years old when she met the author through his ex-wife Amanda Palmer, with whom she was friends. Scarlett Pavlovich was also the babysitter of their then five-year-old child.
According to her testimony, the writer suggested that she take advantage of a bathtub installed in his garden before joining her and raping her, while she was struggling. He also allegedly asked her to call him “ maître » and would have continued to repeat to him “ be a good girl “. Scarlett Pavlovich also claims New York Magazine having remained in contact with the writer after these events and having suffered sexual assault on several occasions. She also claims to have signed a confidentiality agreement not to disclose these facts in exchange for $9,200. If, however, she decided to file a complaint for sexual assault in January 2023, « the case is now closed », a police spokesperson told the magazine.
Similar events would have happened to other people like Kendra Stout and Katherine Kendall who say they suffered surprise rapes or even extreme non-consensual sexual practices. Another complainant named Caroline recalled being sexually assaulted after falling asleep in the bed of Neil Gaiman’s son to whom she had told a story. “ I remember there was something wrong with him “, she told the magazine. The victim also allegedly signed a $300,000 agreement to cover up the affair.
Accusations denied
Neil Gaiman refutes all these accusations. “ Over the past few months, I have watched with horror and dismay as the stories circulated about me on the Internet. I have remained silent until now, both out of respect for the people who shared their stories and a desire not to draw even more attention to a lot of false information (…) I am now at the point where I feel like I have to say something », he wrote on his website Tuesday January 14. “ I have never engaged in non-consensual sex with anyone. Never », he continues. The writer defends himself by nevertheless admitting to having “poorly managed certain romantic relationships”. « I was clearly indifferent to people’s hearts and feelings, and that is something I truly, deeply regret“, he wrote, denying all accusations of sexual assault.
« When I look back at everything that actually happened versus what is alleged, I don’t think there was any abuse. I repeat, I have never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity with anyone. (…). Some of the horrific stories told today simply never happened, while others have been so distorted from what actually happened that they have no relevance to the reality. I am ready to take responsibility for my mistakes. But I can’t and won’t admit to doing things I didn’t do», he concludes.
With these accusations, Neil Gaiman was excluded from many projects such as his series Good Omensproduced by Amazon. The project was reduced to a single 90-minute episode for which the author did not participate. Disney also halted production on its adaptation of The Strange Life of Nobody Owens. Remains season 2 of The Sandman produced by Netflix which is still relevant today.
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