Source: Beau DeMayo/Instagram

Queer 'X-Men '97' Creator Beau DeMayo Takes to OnlyFans to Slam Marvel, Disney with Claim of 'Egregious Prejudicial Misconduct'

Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 3 MIN.

Beau DeMayo, the queer creator of "X-Men '97" – a revamp of the classic '90s series – took to OnlyFans with a half-hour-long video in which he denied rumors around his firing, said he didn't feel "safe at the studio as a gay Black man," and implied that his abrupt termination was racist and homophobic.

As previously reported, DeMayo was jettisoned just before the show aired its first season last spring, then he was denied credit for Season 2, for which he had completed writing duties before his firing.

In the OnlyFans video, DeMayo accused Marvel and Disney of "egregious prejudicial misconduct," Variety reported.

DeMayo's claim echoed language used by Marvel, which made a statement after DeMayo saw his credit for Season 2 of the series stripped away from him.

DeMayo contended that his credit was taken away because he posted queer-themed fan art of an "X-Men" character for Pride month.

But Marvel fired back with the claim that DeMayo had been cut loose "following an internal investigation" because of the "egregious nature of the findings" that investigation turned up.

"A source with knowledge of that investigation further told Variety it was for sexual misconduct," the entertainment magazine relayed, "and that DeMayo's credits were stripped because he violated the terms of his termination agreement."

DeMayo pushed back in the OnlyFans video, declaring that the "allegations of egregious misconduct" were "false" and adding that whsipers of sexual misconduct were "lies," Variety relayed.

Meanwhile, Deadline reported that "Rumors at Disney have swirled around photos supposedly sent to X-Men '97 colleagues and accusations of getting too touchy with people on X-Men '97."

"They are offensive," DeMayo said of the allegations and rumors. "But more concerning is that they're a smear campaign designed to discredit my credibility in order to cover up egregious prejudicial misconduct stretching from select crew members on 'X Men '97' all the way to the top of Marvel Studios."

But DeMayo wasn't done with his rebuttal.

"Flipping the script, the seasoned scribe called out Marvel over its alleged 'toxic environment' and 'near criminal working conditions' that 'turns individuals against one another [and] stokes paranoia to ensure compliance,'" Deadline detailed.

"DeMayo alleges that he both experienced and witnessed misconduct while working on 'X-Men '97' in his capacity as showrunner, and during a brief stint as a screenwriter on the long-in-the-works feature film 'Blade,' set to star Mahershala Ali," Variety detailed.

DeMayo also "asserted... that him 'being gay, Black and open about it at Marvel Studios'... was the real issue the company had with him," Deadline added, "and why he was tossed out and later saw his credits for the upcoming second season of the mutant saga removed."

"They wanted me to be the Black stamp of approval on this project, I declined," Deadline quoted DeMayo saying in the OnlyFans video.

"They wanted to erase aspects of my personality that clashed or proved inconvenient with the misguided narratives they wanted to establish."

"In fact, spotlighting the timeline of his departure, DeMayo says that it was only after his initial conversation with company HR that he 'no longer felt safe at the studio as a gay Black man' [and] that he was shown the door," Deadline noted.

DeMayo went on to declare that he's not done fighting, and to say that he has evidence on his side.

"I have the receipts and the eyewitnesses so long as you stop coercing them to lie," Deadline quoted DeMayo declaring; "you can keep attacking me with lies and misinformation, but we can become the ugliest, most annoying version of that of that," he continued, "or you can start acting like a studio that is worthy of a show like 'X Men '97.'"

DeMayo has also taken legal action, Deadline noted, detailing that "attorney Bryan Freedman filed an expedited jury trial seeking complaint in LA Superior Court to have an allegedly 'non-disparagement provision' removed from the writer's exit package documents..."

"Backed by an army of well-versed employment attorneys, Marvel knowingly incorporated an illegal non-disparagement provision designed to muzzle an openly gay Black man and restrict his statutory rights," the filing says.


by Kilian Melloy , EDGE Staff Reporter

Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.

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