Neil Gaiman Breaks Silence on Misconduct Claims: Calls It a ‘Smear Campaign’ and Says Evidence Was Ignored
Neil Gaiman is ready to step back into the spotlight after a long period of silence. The famous author of The Sandman and Good Omens released a long statement on Monday, February 2, once again denying s**** misconduct claims that first came out almost two years ago. This is the first time he has talked about these issues in nearly a year, a time during which he mostly stayed away from the public eye.
During his time away, several big TV and film projects based on his stories were either changed or stopped. For example, Amazon moved forward with a much shorter final season of Good Omens, and Disney put its plans for a The Graveyard Book movie on hold. Gaiman had also been absent from the promotional tours for his other shows like Anansi Boys and the final episodes of Netflix’s The Sandman.
In his latest post, Gaiman claimed he has been the victim of a smear campaign. He argued that actual evidence was dismissed or ignored by those who reported on the situation. He also mentioned that he feels many people were more focused on getting clicks and causing outrage than on finding out if the allegations were true.
“It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything anywhere, but I didn’t want to let any more time go by without thanking everyone for all your kind messages of support over the last year and a half. I’ve learned firsthand how effective a smear campaign can be, so to be clear: The allegations against me are completely and simply untrue. There are emails, text messages and video evidence that flatly contradict them. These allegations, especially the really salacious ones, have been spread and amplified by people who seemed a lot more interested in outrage and getting clicks on headlines rather than whether things had actually happened or not. (They didn’t.)
One thing that’s kept me going through all this madness is the conviction that the truth would, eventually, come out. I expected that when the allegations were first made there would be journalism, and that the journalism would take the (mountains of) evidence into account, and was astonished to see how much of the reporting was simply an echo chamber, and how the actual evidence was dismissed or ignored.
I was a journalist once, and I have enormous respect for journalists, so I’ve been hugely heartened by the meticulous fact and evidence-based investigative writing of one particular journalist, whom some of you recently brought to my attention, who writes under the name of TechnoPathology.
I’ve had no contact with TechnoPathology. But I’d like to thank them personally for actually looking at the evidence and reporting what they found, which is not what anyone else had done. If you are curious about what they’ve uncovered so far, the link in this post takes you to really good investigative reporting.
It’s been a strange, turbulent and occasionally nightmarish year and a half, but I took my own advice (when things get tough, make good art) and once I was done with making television I went back to doing something else I love even more: writing. I thought it was going to be a fairly short project when I began it, but it’s looking like it’s going to be the biggest thing I’ve done since American Gods. It’s already much longer than The Ocean at the End of the Lane, and it’s barely finished wiping its boots and hanging up its coat. And I spend half of every month being a full-time Dad, and that remains the best bit of my life.
It’s a rough time for the world. I look at what’s happening on the home front and internationally, and I worry; and I am still convinced there are more good people out there than the other kind. Thank you again to so many of you for your belief in my innocence and your support for my work. It has meant the world to me.
Reporting referenced in my statement: technopathology.substack.com/p/neil-gaima…
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself.neilgaiman.com) February 2, 2026 at 7:33 PM
[image or embed]
The legal side of this story has been very complicated. Back in early 2025, Gaiman and his estranged wife, Amanda Palmer, were sued by Scarlett Pavlovich, who claimed she had been assaulted. Gaiman has always denied this and even shared old WhatsApp messages that he says prove their time together was consensual. He has used the term fantasist to describe his accusers and maintains that he never did anything without consent.
While these legal battles were happening, many of the shows fans love were affected. The Sandman on Netflix actually finished its run in July with a special set of final episodes.
Gaiman also revealed that he has been spending his time getting back to his roots as a writer. He announced that he is working on a brand-new book that he thinks will be his biggest project since American Gods. He noted that while he expected it to be a short story, it has grown into a massive novel that is already much longer than The Ocean at the End of the Lane.
The author seems happy to be away from the world of television for now. He mentioned that once I was done with making television I went back to doing something else I love even more: writing. He also shared that spending time being a full-time father remains the best part of his life, even through what he called a nightmarish year and a half.
Gaiman’s statement ended with a thank you to the fans who stayed by his side. He mentioned a specific investigative journalist who has been looking into his case and thanked them for actually looking at the evidence and reporting what they found. It seems he is hoping this new book and the release of new evidence will help him move past this difficult chapter.
With The Sandman concluded and Good Omens heading toward a final special, do you think Gaiman’s upcoming novel can reach the same heights as his most famous classics? Share your thoughts in the comments.
