Beau DeMayo completed his duties on season two prior to his firing in March.

Marvel Fires Back Over 'X-Men '97' Creator's Claim He Was “Stripped” of Season 2 Credit, Cites “Egregious” Investigation Findings (Exclusive)

Five months after Marvel Studios fired X-Men ’97 creator Beau DeMayo for mysterious reasons, the writer claimed Thursday that he no longer will get credit on the second season of the hit Disney+ show, which he completed work on before his exit. DeMayo made the claim on social media, saying it was part of a “troubling pattern” he endured while working for Marvel.

Marvel shot back soon after, and in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, gave insight into his firing, saying it occurred after an internal investigation revealed “egregious” findings.

“Above is #XMen fan-art I posted on Instagram for Gay Pride in June. On June 13, #Marvel sent a letter notifying me that they’d stripped my Season 2 credits due to the post,” DeMayo wrote on X Thursday, along with an illustration of a shirtless version of himself as the superhero Cyclops.

DeMayo, who spent several years at Marvel working on a draft of a long-gestating Blade feature as well as on the TV show Moon Knight, added: “Sadly, this is the latest in a troubling pattern I suffered through while on working on #XMen97 and #Blade.”

Marvel responded by saying that DeMayo’s behavior was the cause of his firing and for him losing his credits.

“Mr. DeMayo was terminated in March 2024 following an internal investigation,” said a Marvel spokesperson in a statement. “Given the egregious nature of the findings, we severed ties with him immediately, and he has no further affiliation with Marvel.”

Sources say that following his exit, an agreement was reached between the two parties over the issue of tweeting about the show, something that DeMayo had continued to occasionally do. In light of the breaches, his credit for season two was removed. While no details of the cause of the termination or the internal reviews have surfaced, sources say it involved sexual misconduct.

DeMayo did not immediately return a request for comment.

DeMayo was an avid social media user during his tenure at Marvel, sharing X-Men tidbits as well as shirtless pics of himself, and even running a non-explicit OnlyFans account. This all led the LGBTQ publication Out to declare him “the Sexy, Gay Marvel Writer & Showrunner to Know.”

On the surface, the notion that Marvel would strip DeMayo of a credit due to a social media post would stretch credulity, as outside observers note the gay Pride illustration is similar to any number of posts he made while employed at Marvel. And fired Marvel executive Victoria Alonso retained credit on projects she previously worked on following her exit in 2023. But the reveal of an internal investigation points to deeper causes.

Despite the bad press around DeMayo’s firing, X-Men ’97 went on to be a hit with audiences and critics, earning Marvel Studios its first perfect 100 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, and garnering DeMayo an Emmy nom for the episode “Remember It.” Marvel teased season two at D23, while the studio tapped Matthew Chauncey to write season three, following DeMayo’s firing.

Until now, DeMayo has remained mostly mum on his firing from Marvel, though in recent days he did note that he had tried and failed to secure a seat at the Emmys from the studio.

Concluded DeMayo in his initial X post on Thursday: “I’ll have more to say soon but must take a step back from social media to find a safer space for me to be out, proud, and nerdy. Stay tuned.”

But after the initial publication of this article, he reacted to Marvel’s statement, writing, “The truth will be revealed. After their Disney Plus disaster, Marvel wants to mislead with alleged contract breaches over tweets. It’s tragic it’s come to this but unsurprising. Stay tuned.”

And on Friday, veteran attorney Bryan Freedman revealed he had taken on DeMayo as a client, and in a statement to THR, said in part: “Having much experience with Disney, the playbook is always the same. 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. As we will 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.”