Neil Gaiman, the famous author behind classic plays like The Sandman, American Gods, and Great Omens, is facing a growing wind of claims spanning nearly four decades.
People from all walks of life—ranging from a previous maid to loving fans—have come forth with disturbing statements of sexual force, abuse, and manipulation.
The complaints, many of which involve Gaiman’s power and influence in the artistic and entertainment business, are reshaping the public’s view of the acclaimed author.
The nanny’s harrowing account ( 2022 )
Scarlett Pavlovich, a former maid to Gaiman and his then-wife Amanda Palmer, is the first significant common discovery. Pavlovich, a 22-year-old play scholar, who worked for the partners in 2022, claimed Gaiman sexually assaulted her in a terrible tragedy on Waiheke Island. According to the Eagle, the alleged event, which occurred in February 2022, marks the start of what Pavlovich statements was a disturbing pattern of force and manipulation while working for the couple.
In Auckland, Pavlovich initially met Palmer in 2020. What appeared to be a relatively innocent exchange between two women who both enjoyed the arts quickly turned into a profoundly disconcerting union.
In February 2022, after Palmer invited Pavlovich to assist with care, Pavlovich found herself exclusively with Gaiman at the couple’s apartment on Waiheke Island. What followed, according to Pavlovich, was a terrible assault.
Pavlovich reportedly was duped into a bath by Gaiman, a renowned author and author of the best-selling books Coraline and American Gods, and he was then forced to perform extremely disturbing functions. Pavlovich describes a situation in which Gaiman attempted to compel her into performing sexual acts despite her repeated demeanor, according to Pavlovich.
She recounts feeling” simple evil” as Gaiman continued his advances, perhaps making humiliating remarks, including telling her to” call me’ learn,'” and insisting that she “be a fine girl”.
The trauma didn’t end there. Pavlovich asserts that Gaiman later smirked and casually mentioned that Palmer had once told him he” couln’t have” her, further confirming the manipulative dynamic between the three. Pavlovich, deeply shaken, struggled to process the events and says that Gaiman’s behavior left her feeling trapped, powerless, and deeply betrayed.
Fan’s painful experience ( 2003-2005 )
Another woman, identified only as” K”, from Florida, has shared a similarly traumatic account. In 2003, at the age of 18, K attended a book signing where she met Gaiman. By 2005, the two had allegedly begun a relationship. K’s allegations are deeply disturbing, claiming that during their time together, she was subjected to rough, non-consensual sexual acts that caused her significant trauma, reported CBR.
One incident, in particular, involved Gaiman allegedly forcing himself on K despite her objections. K reportedly claimed that she never wanted or enjoyed the acts, and that she found the experience to be extremely upsetting.
She claims that the relationship left her emotionally damaged and that it took her years to accept what had happened. K, who is now an adult, claims that the relationship was characterized by coercion and manipulation, with Gaiman using his influence as a well-known author to control her.
The tenant’s coercion ( 2014-2021 )
Caroline Wallner, a former tenant of Neil Gaiman’s Woodstock, New York property, has accused the renowned author of sexually coercing her over several years, from 2014 to 2021, while she and her family were dependent on him for housing and employment.
According to a report by Tortoise Media, Wallner lived in a house on Gaiman’s property, along with her three daughters and husband until 2017. She worked as a ceramic artist in a studio on the property, while also assisting Gaiman and his then-wife, Amanda Palmer, with property maintenance, gardening, and grocery shopping.
Around the time of Wallner’s divorce in 2017, according to reports, the situation started to change. She claims that Gaiman informed her ex-husband that the property would no longer be used, leaving Wallner and her daughters dependent on Gaiman for both housing and employment.
Wallner claims Gaiman began pressuring her for sex, exploiting her vulnerable position, during this time.
Gaiman used his authority to coerce her into having sex, according to Wallner in a specific incident. ” There were little hints of,’ we’re going to need the house,'” Wallner reportedly said. When he would simply come to my studio and demand that I give him a blowjob would be.
She emphasized that despite not accusing anyone of physical abuse, the relationship’s coercive nature led her to characterize her experience as” sexual abuse.”
Gaiman has refuted these claims, claiming that Wallner initiated and consensual sexual encounters. His camp asserts that the relationship was based on mutual agreement, countering Wallner’s account.
As Wallner’s situation continued to deteriorate, she reportedly began receiving sexually explicit photos and video calls from Gaiman after he left the property during the Covid-19 pandemic.
When Wallner stopped responding to these advances in June 2021, she was informed that she would have to leave the house by December 2021. The settlement between Gaiman and Wallner came swiftly, with Gaiman offering$ 275, 000 in exchange for a non-disclosure agreement ( NDA ).
The NDA, which Wallner has since challenged, prohibits her from discussing the case, filing complaints, or sharing details with anyone, including her family. Wallner has claimed that due to financial pressure and emotional strain, she was forced to sign the agreement, which led her to seek post-traumatic stress and depression treatment.
Wallner, in a statement, expressed her desire to speak out for the sake of other vulnerable women, saying,” Saying’ yes’ to an exchange with a powerful, wealthy man when you are vulnerable and fearful is never simple or clear, even if it’s seemingly consensual”, reported Tortoise Media.
The UN’s refugee agency, for which Gaiman is a goodwill ambassador, is currently looking into the allegations.
A writer’s memory ( 1986 )
Gaiman is accused of forcibly kissing her in an aggressive and unwelcome advance at an event in the middle of the 1980s by author and public speaker Julia Hobsbawm, adding to the growing list of accusations against the renowned author.
Hobsbawm, now 60, said Gaiman, then 25, jumped on her “out of the blue”, forced his tongue into her mouth, and pushed her down onto a sofa in her London studio flat, as reported by the Straits Times.
She was able to break free and end contact with him shortly after, saying that romance was not on the cards.
The larger fallout: Legal, professional, and public repercussions
As the stories pile up, the backlash against Gaiman is swift and wide-reaching. Major projects that are closely related to the author are now facing serious consequences. Good Omens season 3 will conclude with a single episode, with Gaiman removed from production. Netflix has canceled the Dead Boy Detectives series and Disney has indefinitely halted the film adaptation of The Graveyard Book, despite the company’s intentions. Meanwhile, the second season of The Sandman remains on track for release.
Gaiman’s team has denied all allegations, asserting that the sexual encounters described were consensual. However, the abundance of testimony from various women points to a troubling pattern of predatory behavior.
A book of reckoning for the literary industry
The impact of these revelations goes beyond Neil Gaiman’s personal reputation, it touches on a larger conversation about power, consent, and the untold stories of abuse in the creative industries. As more women come forward, their voices are demanding accountability and sparking deeper reflection about the separation—or lack thereof—between an artist’s work and personal conduct.
