The highly popular fantasy author Neil Gaiman and his estranged wife Amanda Palmer are being sued by their former nanny, Scarlett Pavlovich, for human trafficking. The lawsuit, filed Monday, also alleges that Gaiman repeatedly raped Pavlovich, and coerced her into sexual services and into providing free childcare. Pavlovich also alleges that Palmer "knowingly benefited from Gaiman's exploitation."
Gaiman has been at the center of multiple allegations of sexual misconduct since last summer, when Tortoise Media published the podcast Master: The Allegations Against Neil Gaiman, where five women accused the writer of unwanted sexual contact. One of those women was Pavlovich, though she did not use her full name until a follow up piece published by New York Magazine was published in January.
Gaiman has since denied all the allegations, writing in a statement on Jan. 14: "I'm far from a perfect person, but I have never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity with anyone. Ever."
Pavlovich, a citizen of New Zealand, first met Palmer in 2020. At the time, Palmer and Gaiman were separated and living in different homes on Waiheke Island, near Auckland. Palmer asked Pavlovich to babysit her and Gaimans' child. According to the lawsuit, Palmer knew of Pavlovich's mental health challenges, as well as Gaiman's "sexual predilections and need to humiliate his female sexual partners — with or without their consent."
After meeting Gaiman, Pavlovich alleges Gaiman raped her multiple times. "Some incidents took place in the presence of Gaiman and Palmer's child," the lawsuit reads.
Pavlovich asserts that Gaiman and Palmer knew that Pavlovich was poor and homeless, and that Pavlovich only endured these abusive acts because she would otherwise "lose her job, housing, and promised future career support if she did not."
Since the allegations over the summer, multiple adaptations of Gaiman's works have been either paused or canceled. Dark Horse Comics announced they would no longer be publishing his works.
NPR has reached out to representatives for Gaiman and Palmer.
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