Author Neil Gaiman accused of allegedly sexually abusing multiple women

Several women have come forward with accusations of sexual assault against author Neil Gaiman. The famous fantasy author is best known for properties such as The Sandman, Good omens and Coraline.

In one 13 January Vulture reportspoke to several women on the record about their alleged experiences with the famed novelist, 64, including Scarlett Pavlovich, who previously babysat for Gaiman and his ex-wife Amanda Palmer.

Pavlovich told Vulture writer Lila Shapiro that she and Palmer, whom Gaiman married in 2011, had been friends since Pavlovich was 22. Palmer asked Pavlovich to babysit her and Gaiman’s son at Gaiman’s home on Waiheke Island in New Zealand. The couple was separated at the time.

Pavlovich claimed that she and Gaiman were alone in the house while they waited for his son to finish a playdate. Gaiman suggested that Pavlovich take a bath. Pavlovich claimed that while she was in the bathtub, Gaiman joined her naked.

“I said ‘no,'” Pavlovich recounted. “I said, ‘I’m not sure about my body. He said, ‘It’s okay — it’s just me. Just relax. Just talk.'”

Pavlovich claimed that Gaiman “put his fingers right in my a–.” The author then allegedly “tried to rub his penis between my breasts” and ejaculated on her face.

“He said “Call me ‘master’ and I’ll come,'” Pavlovich said. “He said, ‘Be a good girl. You’re a good little girl.’

Pavlovich claimed that Gaiman continued to assault her throughout her time looking after the family, including one instance where she had to endure anal sex using butter as a lubricant. Pavlovich also noted that Gaiman’s son began addressing her as a “slave” and ordered her to call him “master”. Later, at a hotel, Gaiman allegedly had sex with Pavlovich while the child was still in the room.

The author was first accused of sexual assault in July 2023, when the British podcast Master posted six episodes centered on the sexual assault allegations against Gaiman from five different women.

This was told by a woman identified as Caroline in the program Vulture that she and her husband, Phillip, lived and worked as caretakers at Gaiman and Palmer’s home in Woodstock, NY. After Phillip moved, Caroline and Gaiman began a physical relationship and occasionally had phone sex.

Caroline recalled falling asleep one night reading to Gaiman’s son, then 4, in Gaiman and Palmer’s bed. When the author returned home, he allegedly entered the bed with his son still in it, reached over him and placed Caroline’s hand on Gaiman’s penis.

“He had no boundaries,” Caroline recalled. “I remember thinking there was something really wrong with him.”

Several other women also spoke Vulture for the cover story, including Katherine Kendall, who met Gaiman in 2012 when she was 22 and alleged that Gaiman tried to have sex with her on his tour bus (Gaiman later gave Kendall $60,000 to enter therapy and “do Kendra Stout, who met Gaiman at a book signing when she was 18, claimed the author raped her in 2007.

Caroline claimed that in December 2021, Gaiman’s business manager offered her $5,000 if she signed an NDA and moved out of Gaiman’s Woodstock property. Pavlovich, who remained in contact with Gaiman for a period, eventually also signed an NDA and received $9,200 in separate payments. Pavlovich filed a police report against Gaiman in January 2023, but due to both Gaiman and Palmer’s refusal to speak to authorities (Gaiman provided a written statement), the case was dropped, Vulture reported.

Gaiman has denied all charges since 2023. The author, who has numerous television adaptations of his books in the works, stepped back from production of Prime Video’s third season Good omens adaptation.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.

If you or someone you know has been sexually abused, text “STRENGTH” to the crisis text line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.