Former “X-Men ’97” series head writer has hit Marvel Animation Studio LLC with a lawsuit in California state court, seeking to invalidate a nondisparagement provision he claims Marvel coerced him into signing amid his alleged”forced ouster” this year.
In a Sept. 3, six-page complaint, Los Angeles writer Beau DeMayo challenges the legality of Marvel’s nondisparagement provision he signed as part of a settlement and release agreement with the company, a provision that DeMayo claims was “designed to muzzle an openly gayBlack man” and restrict his statutory employment rights as the entertainment giant fired him on the eve of the show’s premiere on Disney+.
“Backed by an army of well-versed employment attorneys, Marvel knowingly incorporated an illegal non-disparagement provision designed to muzzle an openly gay Black man and restrict his statutory rights,” DeMayo said in the complaint. “And, in fact, Marvel invoked this unenforceable provision to justify its nefarious removal of DeMayo’s credits on the acclaimed series ‘X-Men ’97.'”
The provision at issue bars DeMayo from disclosing any information related to his employment at Marvel, which is owned by The WaltDisney Co., including information regarding any unlawful acts he experienced or witnessed in the workplace, according to the suit.
But DeMayo claims the provision “quite clearly runs afoul of California law” and violates public policy “as a matter of law” underCalifornia’s Fair Employment and Housing Act.DeMayo worked on Marvel’s yet-to-be-released live-action feature film “Blade” in 2022, and he worked as the head writer, executive producer and showrunner of the new series “X-Men ’97” from February 2021 until March of this year when he was abruptly fired days before the series was released.
DeMayo claims in his complaint that he was never given a “full and fair” investigation before being fired, and that Marvel threatened to withhold his bonus and writing credits unless he immediately signed a settlement and release agreement that exculpated Marvel from liability and that included a nondisparagement provision that purportedly compelled his silence.
“Under duress, DeMayo capitulated,” he said.
Following his firing, DeMayo took to X, formerly known as Twitter, telling his more than 80,000 followers in August that Marvel notified him in June that the company stripped him of his season 2 writing credits allegedly due to an X-Men fan art picture he posted on Instagram for gay pride month days earlier.
Marvel has since released a statement saying that DeMayo was terminated due to the “egregious nature” of findings in an “internal investigation” — allegations DeMayo has denied.
Marvel has also barred DeMayo from attending the 76th Primetime Creative Arts Emmys, where he is nominated for his work on the X-Men series, and the company and its affiliates “continue to willfully exploit this illegal provision as a means to silence DeMayo,” he alleged in the suit.
DeMayo plans to tell his story about his employment history and experience with Marvel on the online content provider OnlyFans, and he wants to share how he allegedly “bore witness to and endured rampant discriminatory and harassing conduct during his years-long tenure with the company,” he said in the suit.
DeMayo, however, alleges that Marvel’s agreement seeks to silence him from publicly discussing its “illicit and unsafe employment practices.”
The one-count complaint seeks declaratory judgment that Marvel’s nondisparagement provision is “illegal, invalid and unenforceable,” as well as an order awarding DeMayo litigation costs.
DeMayo’s counsel and representatives for Marvel didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment Thursday.
DeMayo is represented by Bryan J. Freedman and Summer E. Benson of Liner Freedman Taitelman & Cooley LLP.
Counsel information for Marvel wasn’t immediately available Thursday.
The case is Beau DeMayo v. Marvel Animation Studio LLC, case number 24stcv22633, in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles.
–Editing by Orlando Lorenzo.