A number of ladies have accused “The Sandman” and “Coraline” writer Neil Gaiman of sexual assault in a New York Journal cowl story, talking on the report about their experiences.
Again in July, Tortoise Media broke the information that Gaiman had been accused of sexual assault by two ladies and launched a six-part podcast, “Grasp,” which lined the allegations of 5 ladies. Nevertheless, a number of of the ladies had used solely their first names or pseudonyms to guard their identities, and a significant information group had but to corroborate the total extent of the reporting — till now.
Within the New York Journal piece, titled “There Is No Protected Phrase,” reporter Lila Shapiro spoke to eight ladies who had comparable experiences with Gaiman, 4 of which additionally participated in Tortoise’s podcast. Certainly one of these ladies, Scarlett Pavlovich, was 22 when she first met Gaiman’s ex-wife, Amanda Palmer, in New Zealand. They struck up a friendship earlier than Palmer requested Pavlovich to assist babysit her and Gaiman’s 5-year-old baby. Pavlovich mentioned that the primary time she met Gaiman, whereas ready for the kid to complete a playdate, he supplied her a shower in a claw-foot tub in his backyard. She alleges that he then joined her within the tub bare, requested for her to sit down on his lap and sexually assaulted her.
“He put his fingers straight into my ass and tried to place his penis in my ass. And I mentioned, ‘No, no.’ Then he tried to rub his penis between my breasts, and I mentioned ‘no’ as nicely. Then he requested if he may come on my face, and I mentioned ‘no’ however he did anyway,” Pavlovich informed New York Magazine. “He mentioned, ‘Name me ‘grasp,’ and I’ll come.’ He mentioned, ‘Be woman. You’re little woman.’”
Pavlovich claims this continued for the rest of the time that she babysat for the household, together with an occasion the place he allegedly tried to have anal intercourse along with her utilizing butter as lubricant.
“When it was over, he referred to as her ‘slave’ and ordered her to ‘clear him up,’” the article experiences. “She protested that it wasn’t hygienic. ‘He mentioned, “Are you defying your grasp?”‘ she recollects. ‘I needed to lick my very own shit.’”
Representatives for Gaiman informed the Tortoise podcast that “sexual degradation, bondage, domination, sadism and masochism will not be to everybody’s style, however between consenting adults, BDSM is lawful.” Although the New York Journal article states that the entire accusers had sooner or later performed alongside by calling him “grasp” as he desired and persevering with to speak with him, the ladies allege that consent and particular BDSM actions had not been mentioned and agreed upon previous to them taking place.
At one other level, Gaiman was staying together with his son at a lodge in Auckland and requested Pavlovich to observe the kid as he obtained a therapeutic massage. She alleges that he then proceeded to have intercourse along with her whereas his son was within the room, and continued to speak with him in the course of the act. Pavlovich says she requested Gaiman, “What the fuck are you doing?” and was in a “state of shock” in the course of the incident.
Gaiman has strenuously denied all allegations towards him for the reason that Tortoise podcast got here out, asserting that every one relations have been consensual. In an announcement in response to Pavlovich’s allegation in regards to the lodge room incident, his representatives referred to as it “false, to not point out deplorable.” Gaiman’s reps didn’t instantly reply to Selection‘s request for additional touch upon the New York Journal piece.
Nevertheless, Pavlovich remained involved with Gaiman after that time, even reassuring him at one level that their interactions had been consensual. Finally, she agreed to signal an NDA and was paid, in accordance with NY Magazine, a complete of $9,200 in 9 separate funds. In January 2023, she filed a police report accusing him of sexual assault, however the “matter has now been closed,” a police spokesperson informed NY Magazine.
Caroline, who opted to be recognized simply by her first identify, additionally signed an NDA after her expertise with Gaiman. She labored as a caretaker and typically babysitter on Gaiman’s property in Woodstock, N.Y., and the 2 started a bodily relationship after her husband left her in December 2017.
Based on NY Magazine, Caroline as soon as fell asleep studying tales to the kid in Gaiman’s mattress. When he returned, he “obtained into mattress together with his son within the center, then reached throughout the kid to seize Caroline’s hand and put it on his penis,” the NY Magazine story reads. Caroline says she jumped out of the mattress. “He didn’t have boundaries,” Caroline informed NY Magazine. “I bear in mind considering that there was one thing actually fallacious with him.”
In December 2021, Caroline claims Gaiman’s enterprise supervisor supplied her $5,000 to signal an NDA and transfer off the property. She requested for a a lot greater sum — $300,000 — to which Gaiman agreed. His representatives informed NY Magazine that “Caroline initiated the sexual encounters” and denied “that he engaged in any sexual exercise along with her within the presence of his son.”
One other accuser is Kendra Stout, who was 18 years outdated when she first met Gaiman at a e-book signing in Florida. Their relationship turned bodily round three years later, and in 2007 she alleges he raped her throughout a visit to the Cornish countryside after she repeatedly informed him “no” resulting from having a foul UTI. Stout filed a police report in October, in accordance with NY Magazine.
Katherine Kendall, who was 22 when she first met Gaiman in 2012, additionally spoke out, alleging that Gaiman tried to assault her in his tour bus after she had informed him she didn’t need to have intercourse with him. New York Journal experiences that years later, he gave her $60,000 for remedy to — as he put it in a recorded cellphone name — “make up for the injury.”
Because the NY Magazine article states, since Tortoise’s bombshell report in July, a number of of Gaiman’s movie and TV tasks have been affected. Season 3 of Prime Video’s “Good Omens” will now finish with one 90-minute episode, with Gaiman not a part of the manufacturing. Disney paused manufacturing on its movie adaptation of “The Graveyard E book” and Netflix canceled “Lifeless Boy Detectives,” although it’s unclear if it was associated to the allegations. Nevertheless, “The Sandman” Season 2 remains to be anticipated to launch this yr on Netflix, along with Prime Video’s “Anansi Boys” collection adaptation (Netflix and Prime Video didn’t instantly reply to Selection‘s request for touch upon the standing of those reveals).
