Two women have accused "The Sandman" writer Neil Gaiman of sexual assault. The incidents allegedly took place in 2005 and 2022.
Neil Gaiman at "The Sandman" World Premiere in London.
Mike Marsland/WireImage
Two women have accused "The Sandman" writer Neil Gaiman of sexual assault.
The allegations are detailed in a new podcast from Tortoise Media.
The alleged offences took place in 2005 and 2022. Here's a timeline of the accusations.
Two women have accused "The Sandman" writer Neil Gaiman of sexual assault.
Gaiman rose to fame as the author of the DC Comics fantasy series, "The Sandman," between 1989 and 1996. His work continued to explore religion, mythology, and magic in books including "American Gods" and "Good Omens."
All three have been adapted into TV shows, and the second season of Netflix's "The Sandman" is in production.
Tortoise Media's podcast, "Master: The allegations against Neil Gaiman," which was released on July 3, features claims from two women who say he sexually assaulted them in 2005 and 2022.
The first victim, identified only as K because she wished to remain anonymous, said she started a sexual relationship with Gaiman in 2005 when she was 20.
Here's a timeline of the allegations.
2005: K starts a relationship with Gaiman.
Neil Gaiman at Sundance Film Festival in 2005.
J. Vespa/WireImage)
The fourth episode of the podcast explains that K met Gaiman at a Florida book signing in 2003 when she was 18, and they started their relationship two years later.
K told Tortoise Media that she had "rough and painful sex" with Gaiman that "she neither wanted nor enjoyed."
She also claimed Gaiman had sex with her while she had an infection "despite her asking him not to."
February 2022: Gaiman starts a relationship with a woman in New Zealand.
Neil Gaiman at the 73rd National Book Awards in 2022.
Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
The second and third episodes of the podcast are about Scarlett, a 23-year-old nanny, who claims that she started a sexual relationship with Gaiman at his New Zealand home in February 2022, only a few hours after they first met.
On that day, Scarlett alleged that Gaiman assaulted her in a bath but they went on to have a consensual relationship.
Scarlett told Tortoise Media that "Gaiman engaged in rough and degrading penetrative sexual acts with her."
She also described how "the pain was celestial" during one incident, but he refused to stop when she asked.
"He laughed and said I needed to be punished and used his belt on me," Scarlett claimed.
July 2024: Gaiman denies the accusations, and says both incidents were "consensual."
Neil Gaiman at the 2024 Writers Guild Awards.
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
Tortoise Media relayed a statement from Gaiman, which said: "he denies any unlawful behavior with K and is disturbed by her allegations."
It continued: "He believes K's allegations are motivated by her regret over their relationship and that Scarlett was suffering from a condition associated with false memories at the time of her relationship with him, a claim which is not supported by her medical records and medical history."
Gaiman told Tortoise Media that during the alleged 2022 incident involving Scarlett "they only 'cuddled' and 'made out' in the bath and that he had established consent for this."
"His position is that, over the three-week sexual relationship that followed, they only ever engaged in consensual digital penetration."
Representatives for Neil Gaiman did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.
If you are a survivor of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline (1-800-656-4673) or visit its website to receive confidential support.
