In a devastating and tragic turn of events, former nanny Scarlett Pavlovich has filed three civil lawsuits against acclaimed British author Neil Gaiman and his wife, musician Amanda Palmer, accusing Gaiman of repeatedly sexually assaulting her during her time working for the couple. The lawsuits were filed in federal courts across Wisconsin, Massachusetts, and New York, detailing a harrowing account of abuse.
Pavlovich, a New Zealand native, met Palmer in 2020 while living homeless on a beach. Palmer reportedly invited her to the couple’s home on Waiheke Island, where Pavlovich began working as a nanny, running errands, and caring for their child. Despite her labor, the lawsuit claims Pavlovich was rarely compensated, with expenses such as ferry tickets between Auckland and Waiheke Island left unpaid.
The accusations of sexual assault began when Gaiman allegedly assaulted Pavlovich the night they first met. The abuse continued for months, as Pavlovich, struggling with poverty and homelessness, stayed with the couple. Gaiman had promised to help her with her writing career, which she believed was her only opportunity for advancement. Pavlovich later confided in Palmer about the assaults, only to learn that her husband had allegedly victimized multiple women before, with some receiving compensation.
The tragic abuse only stopped when Pavlovich threatened self-harm, at which point she left the family. The lawsuits claim that Gaiman and Palmer violated federal human trafficking laws, with Pavlovich seeking at least $7 million in damages.
Following a revealing New York Magazine interview, which exposed similar allegations from other women, Gaiman publicly denied the claims, insisting he has never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity. The shocking case has already caused significant professional fallout, with multiple publishers distancing themselves from Gaiman’s work, and Disney halting plans for a film adaptation of his novel, The Graveyard Book.
