The attorney for “X-Men ’97” creator Beau DeMayo has issued a statement in response to Disney, saying DeMayo has been fired from the series due to allegations of misconduct.
“Because I have a lot of experience with Disney, the playbook is always the same,” attorney Bryan Freedman of Freedman Taitelman + Cooley said in a statement to Variety. “Family friendly on the outside, but secretly trying to sneak illegal, unscrupulous items into contracts that silence the truth and prevent the employee/customer from asserting basic constitutional rights.”
The statement comes a day after Disney released its own statement on not only why DeMayo was fired from the series, but also why his credits are being removed from the second season of “X-Men ’97.” DeMayo had stated on social media earlier in the day that Disney had taken the aforementioned action due to gay pride posts DeMayo made in June.
Disney responded by saying it was taking action after an investigation found DeMayo had committed “egregious” misconduct during his time on the show, but did not elaborate on the nature of the misconduct. A source said Variety that it was sexual misconduct that led to DeMayo’s initial removal and that repeated violations of his separation agreement led to the removal of his Season 2 credits.
“As we will explain with detailed examples that we will roll out one by one, Disney’s model is very clear and a repeating illegal pattern,” Freedman’s statement continued. “Once it is challenged or exposed, the gaslighting and blame shifting begins to anyone willing to tell the truth through an international, well-oiled publicity machine.”
You can read the full statement below.
Freedman has represented a number of high-profile clients over the years, including Megyn Kelly, Gabrielle Union, the Michael Jackson estate and Chris Harrison.
DeMayo was fired in March, ahead of the series premiere on Disney+. Before leaving, he had completed work on seasons 1 and 2 of the animated program. “X-Men ’97” received good reviews upon its debut and was recently nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program.
Full statement:
Because I have a lot of experience with Disney, the script is always the same. Family friendly on the outside, but secretly seek to slip illegal, unscrupulous items into contracts that silence the truth and prevent the employee/customer from asserting basic constitutional rights. As we will explain with detailed examples that we will unpack one by one, Disney’s model is very clear and a repeating illegal pattern. Once it is challenged or exposed, the gaslighting and blame shifting begins to anyone willing to tell the truth through an international, well-oiled publicity machine. The problem for Disney is that when they go up against someone who has concrete evidence that this has happened over 100 times, many of which have resulted in them settling hundreds of cases, if not thousands, to try to get critics, employees, and even lawyers to remain under control. sue them. The problem for them is that I have the proof and clients are willing to be honest, and they know it. These are actually facts and not arguments or conjecture. Over the next few months, with the courageous help of those who have been illegally silenced, retaliated for simply speaking the truth and then destroyed for it, this bullying and illegal behavior will be exposed to the government one by one . Beau DeMayo wants nothing from Marvel/Disney except the truth. He will courageously tell the truth. I will do that too. Standby.
