Disney paused his adaptation Neil Gaiman“The Cemetery Story,” which was in pre-production with the director Mark Forster at Pinewood Studios in the UK The move comes after five women accused Gaiman of sexually assaulting the author of the young adult novel The Graveyard Book in 2008.
Insiders told IndieWire that movie was not repealed, but a number of factors, including the allegations, contributed to its suspension.
This summer, a British startup news outlet Turtle Media published podcast series detailing the claims made against Gaiman by four women. The fifth woman stepped forward. in late July on the podcast Am I Broken: Survivor Stories. Two women said they had consensual relationships with the author, but alleged that he forced them into non-consensual, “rough and degrading” sex. The allegations described incidents that occurred years apart.
Gaiman, who has denied the allegations, gained international fame for his Sandman graphic novel series and novels such as Good Omens, Stardust, American Gods and Coraline. IndieWire's requests for comment to his representatives, as well as to Pinewood Studios and Forster's office, went unanswered.
No cast has yet been announced for The Graveyard Book, which tells the story of a boy raised by the supernatural inhabitants of a graveyard after his family is murdered. Coraline director Henry Selick was attached to the project immediately after Disney acquired the rights to the book in 2012. Forster joins the team in 2022 to direct and produce the film with partner Renee Wolfe from a screenplay by David Magee (Finding Neverland).
On December 29, 2022 Tumblr In the recording, Gaiman said he had nothing to do with the Disney production. Responding to a fan, he said, “You know everything I know. And no, no control or say. Fingers crossed if they do it, it'll be good.”
In late August, Netflix announced that Dead Boy Detectives, a series based on characters created by Gaiman for DC Comics, would not be renewed for a second season.