Former X-Men '97 lead maintains 'false' allegations are 'a smear campaign,' claims 'near-criminal working conditions at Marvel'

Beau DeMayo, the former showrunner and lead writer on X-Men '97, is breaking his silence after allegations of misconduct emerged in relation to his firing by Marvel Studios.

Over Labor Day weekend, DeMayo signaled to his followers on social media that something would arrive this week, captioning one photo on Instagram as "the calm before the storm." He then released a nearly 30-minute video statement to his OnlyFans page on Wednesday, in which he called the accusations against him "false" and part of "a smear campaign" from the studio designed to discredit him, while alleging what he called "near-criminal working conditions at Marvel."

Marvel did not respond to Entertainment Weekly's request for comment.

"I first want to address the massive elephant in the room," DeMayo said in the video. "The allegations being made against me are very serious and I take them seriously. It's why I took some time for myself these last few weeks, one, to sit with my legal team and figure out how best to respond, but more importantly, just sit with those I love, those closest to me, and assure them of what I will assure you now and what they already knew.

"These allegations of egregious misconduct are false," he continued. "The rumors being spread around about me online are lies and they are offensive, but more concerning is that they're a smear campaign designed to discredit my credibility."

DeMayo stated that his legal team "has forensic investigators tracking these attacks, scoops, and leaks so that we can hold those responsible for defamation, harassment, and for inciting outright criminal threats of violence."

In March, a week before the premiere of X-Men '97 season 1 on Disney+, EW confirmed that Marvel fired DeMayo as showrunner, though he had already completed work on season 2. No specific reason was given at the time, but he was abruptly pulled from press commitments. When asked during an interview, Marvel TV head Brad Winderbaum told EW that he wouldn't characterize DeMayo's exit as a firing, noting, "'We parted ways' is the best way I could say."

DeMayo disappeared from social media for a time, but returned and began posting behind-the-scenes tidbits about the making of X-Men '97 as the first season progressed. The situation took a turn last month when he wrote on social media that Marvel "sent a letter notifying me that they’d stripped my season 2 credits" over a piece of fan art he shared in June to celebrate LGBTQ Pride Month. The fan art in question featured an illustration of a shirtless DeMayo wearing Cyclops attire.

A spokesperson for Marvel responded with a statement that said, "Mr. DeMayo was terminated in March 2024 following an internal investigation. Given the egregious nature of the findings, we severed ties with him immediately and he has no further affiliation with Marvel." A source close to the situation told EW that the investigation involved sexual misconduct.

DeMayo hired Los Angeles-based lawyer Bryan Freedman, who asserted to EW in a statement that Marvel's response, as well as the allegations against his client, were part of Disney's "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."

He promised to "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."

DeMayo posted a link to his OnlyFans on his public social media platforms Wednesday, noting that it would be "the only place you’ll hear the whole truth." In the video, he said he "needed a safe space" without "fear of harassment or censorship" to address the situation.

"Emotional trauma inflicted upon me while working on this series has taken me to some pretty dark places — places I'm not proud of, places that would've gotten a whole lot worse had friends and coworkers and family not rallied around me these last few months to remind me of who I am because, honestly, I'm just defeated and I'm tired," he said.

DeMayo went on to claim that his identity as a gay Black man "was weaponized by Marvel execs and select crew members" to undermine him and that Marvel "looked the other way." He cited unnamed individuals among Marvel brass and the X-Men '97 staff itself who used "the same dog-whistling stereotypes favored by bigots," such as, "He's big, he's intimidating, too opinionated, angry, emotional, flamboyant, dramatic, a pervert."

He also claimed that a team member on X-Men '97 joked about showing DeMayo's "thirst traps" on Instagram to "his underage son," who then asked, "Do they need to buy me shirts for Christmas?" DeMayo allegedly notified this team member that a person involved with the show was having "a potentially exploitative sexual relationship with a PA," but said they apparently buried the report and instead colluded with the individual in question to discredit him.

"It is wrong for Marvel execs to roll their eyes when I raised concerns about being bullied and targeted on account of my identity and tell me to deal with it because these individuals are talented," DeMayo said, adding that he was painted by top brass as difficult to work with for advocating on behalf of X-Men fans and adapting the comics authentically.

Marvel also hired DeMayo to work on Blade, the new movie reboot starring Mahershala Ali that's been stuck in development for years, though he has since left the project. DeMayo said he was fired and his X-Men '97 season 2 position was "aggressively marginalized," which he claimed happened after he reported to the studio that someone involved in the project made a racist comment about needing to "crack the whip."

DeMayo said he believes that the X-Men '97 crew is still facing "impossible pipeline demands" and "studio politics."

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DeMayo ended his video by saying he hopes he and his legal team can work with Marvel to ensure a healthy work environment and a proper investigation into workplace conditions that "resembles some form of ethical due process."

The full video is available to watch on DeMayo's subscription-based OnlyFans page.