Neil Gaiman denies sexual assault allegations after several women come forward | Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman has denied all allegations against him after several women accused him of sexual misconduct in a New York Magazine article, writing in a lengthy statement: “I have never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity with anyone. Never.”

In July, a podcast investigation by media outlet Tortoise reported allegations from two women of sexual assault against Gaiman. One of the women claimed Gaiman performed sexual acts on her without her consent when she was 22 and working as a nanny for the perpetrator’s family in New Zealand. Gaiman strongly denied any wrongdoing at the time, saying all of his sexual relationships were consensual.

After the podcast’s release, a woman who had worked as Gaiman’s caretaker in upstate New York alleged that he pressured her to have sex with him in exchange for letting her live on his property, then made him sign a non-disclosure agreement. in exchange for a payment of $275,000. Gaiman said at the time that his relationship with her had been entirely consensual.

New York Magazine reported this week that more women had come forward with accusations against Gaiman, including sexual assault, sexual misconduct and coercion. The magazine interviewed eight women, six of them officially, including four women who participated in the Tortoise podcast series.

All of the women who spoke on the record to New York Magazine said they had consensual sex with the author at times, but claimed he preferred rough sex and BDSM activities to which they did not not always consented to in advance. The two women who had worked for him said they felt constrained in their relationship while working for Gaiman and living on his property.

In the full statement posted Tuesday on his website, Gaiman said he had refrained from speaking publicly about the allegations “out of respect for the people who shared their stories and a desire not to draw even more attention to a lot of misinformation.” ” but he added: “I’ve now reached the point where I feel like I should say something. »

While acknowledging “there are moments I half recognize and moments I don’t recognize” in the New York Magazine article, he denied committing sexual assault, writing: “I’m far from a perfect person, but I never indulged in non-sexual acts. -consensual sexual activity with anyone. Never.”

Although he still believed his relationships with all the women were “completely consensual sexual relationships” based on their communications with him at the time, he said he spent months thinking about how he had behaved in his relationships.

“I was emotionally unavailable while sexually available, focused on myself, and not as thoughtful as I could or should have been,” he wrote.

“At the same time, as I reflect on my past – and re-examine everything that actually happened as opposed to what was alleged – I do not accept that there was abuse. I repeat, I have never had non-consensual sex with anyone.

He said some of the “horrific” allegations “simply never happened” and others “have been so distorted from what actually happened that they have no relevance to the reality “.

“I am prepared to take responsibility for any missteps I have made. I don’t want to turn my back on the truth, and I can’t accept being portrayed as someone I’m not, and I can’t and won’t admit to doing things I don’t. I didn’t do it.

Gaiman’s representatives previously told Tortoise that “sexual degradation, bondage, domination, sadism and masochism may not be to everyone’s taste, but between consenting adults, BDSM is legal.”

A complaint accusing Gaiman of sexual assault was filed with New Zealand police in January 2023, but the investigation was ultimately dropped.

Since the allegations came to light, three film adaptations of Gaiman’s works have been canceled or suspended in production, including Netflix’s Dead Boy Detectives, the third and final season of Amazon’s drama Good Omens, and a Disney adaptation of The Graveyard Book, which was in development. None of the streaming services have confirmed that these decisions were made due to the allegations, but Deadline reported that Gaiman withdrew from his involvement in Good Omens due to the allegations.