X-Men ‘97, Marvel Studios’ revival of X-Men: The Animated Series, garnered widespread appreciation after its release on Disney+. Many of the critics placed it among the best Marvel projects after Avengers: Endgame. However, despite the success, the show found itself amidst a bitter war of words between its former writer Beau DeMayo and Disney.

A still from X-Men ’97 | Credits: Marvel Animation

Beau DeMayo was fired ahead of the release of Season 1 for reasons unknown. Last week, the X-Men ’97 writer came forward and stated that he was stripped of his Season 2 credits because of posting a gay-themed fan art of Cyclops on his social media. Marvel Studios immediately responded that it was due to some “egregious” findings from their investigations.

However, now DeMayo’s lawyer has spiced up the situation by claiming that someone at Disney allegedly tried to replace the head writer because of his success with the animated X-Men series.

Beau DeMayo’s lawyer calls out Disney for wrongly firing his client

Beau DeMayo | Credits: Beau DeMayo’s Instagram

For those still unversed, Beau DeMayo had allegedly sent n*de photos of him to young male staffers in s*xually suggestive “hero” poses (via ComicBookMovie.com). Reportedly, he urged the young staffers to use them as inspiration for the show.

Trusted insider Jeff Sneider doubled down on the s*xual misconduct allegations by reporting that his sources have found how any guy under 30, working on X-Men ’97 had his n*des whether they wanted it or not (see The InSneider). Nevertheless, despite all the chatter, DeMayo’s lawyer Bryan Freedman has written to The Streamr website that the allegations are “wrong and defamatory”.

Freedman did not deny that someone may have left during his client’s tenure but claimed that such creative changes are normal during the production of TV shows. But interestingly, he denied the allegations about sending inappropriate photos. Bryan Freedman alleged that it was only when they imposed restrictions on his free speech and Beau DeMayo refused to comply with an “illegal NDA”, somebody inside Disney desperately tried to replace him for his rising success.

No one who reported Beau to HR received an inappropriate photo or video. That is simply untrue. As a proud gay black man, Disney knew exactly who he was and what he stood up for. That’s why they did not tell him to stop his Only Fans page. They let him be himself which allowed his creativity to thrive. When they objected to his free speech rights and not complying with illegal NDA’s a certain person over there tried to replace him because he was becoming more successful than other creators. 

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Beau DeMayo had a written agreement with Marvel that allowed him to keep posting about the show even after being fired. He reportedly breached his accord by posting an LGBTQ-themed fan-art of an undressed Cyclops which led to his removal from Season 2’s credits.

However, most fans believe that there is a more serious controversy due to the presence of “egregious” findings in an internal investigation. Moreover, he also made such social media posts during his tenure at Disney which makes it unlikely for a single social media post to have such repercussions.

The makers promise a bright future for X-Men ’97 despite Beau DeMayo’s removal

The X-Men team in X-Men ’97 | Credits: Marvel Animation

Despite everything that occurred backstage during the production of X-Men ’97, Beau DeMayo did a fantastic job with the series. With memorable sequences, impressive animation, and a brilliant story, both the latest and veteran Marvel fans enjoyed the show. During the recently held D23 event, executive producer of the series Brad Winderbaum promised a bright future for X-Men ’97.

Brad Winderbaum had stated (via Collider) that Season 2 will be grander in scale as it is slated to feature more X-teams.

There’s many teams, in Marvel, that have the letter ‘X’ that are followed by a hyphen. I would put it to you like this… there’s two other X teams in Season 2.

Besides that, the show will also feature our mutants in suits that are inspired by Grant Morrison’s X-Men series. Marvel also needed someone to replace Beau DeMayo for the third season and they have hired What If..? fame Matthew Chauncey for the job. It will be exciting to see if the upcoming seasons can retain the charm of the first one. On the other hand, any further comment by Disney or Marvel on the Beau DeMayo controversy is also awaited.

X-Men ’97 can be streamed on Disney+.