X-Men ’97 creator accuses Marvel of firing him over Pride month post; latter denies claims in new statement

Beau DeMayo, the creator of X-Men ’97, claims he was fired by Marvel Studios and had his credits removed from the show’s second season due to a Pride Month post, a claim Marvel firmly denies.

On August 16, Marvel Studios released a statement, explaining that 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,” the statement added.

Reports also suggest that DeMayo was also investigated for alleged sexual misconduct and that his removal of writing credits was due to violations of his termination agreement.

In response, DeMayo’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, issued a statement to refute the claims. He accused Disney of following a “pattern of silencing employees through dubious contractual practices”.

“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,” the statement read.

“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. 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.”

On August 15, DeMayo took to X to allege that Marvel fired him because of a fan-art post he shared during Pride Month. The artwork, which celebrated LGBTQ+ pride, was posted in June, and DeMayo claims he received a letter from Marvel on June 13 informing him that his season 2 credits were stripped due to the post.

“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. Sadly, this is the latest in a troubling pattern I suffered through while working on #XMen97 and #Blade,” his statement claimed.

“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,” he wrote.