Beau DeMayo’s controversial firing some weeks before the premiere of X-Men ’97 was a huge point of discussion among fans. While various rumors have been circulated, the true reason is unknown. DeMayo had continued talking about the show as the episodes drop weekly and many fans are also loving the narrative he had built for the X-Men team.
While future seasons of the show have been greenlit, DeMayo is unlikely to return as showrunner. His recent Marvel firing and his past fiasco with The Witcher series (comments made by one of his co-writers on the show), signal a problematic reputation that Marvel wouldn’t want to associate with further.
Beau DeMayo’s Alleged Toxicity Makes Him Unlikely For a Marvel Return
Some weeks before the premiere of X-Men ’97, shocking news started to come out that Marvel Studios had parted ways with the series creator Beau DeMayo. The actual reason behind it has never been revealed but DeMayo has already had a negative reputation after his comments on The Witcher and the immediate backlash it received.
The Witcher was not firing on all cylinders, and fans were unhappy with the frustrating deviations the show had from the source novel by Andrzej Sapkowski. DeMayo further added fuel to the fire in 2022, by revealing that the writers on Netflix’s The Witcher actively disliked the books, which led to the series’ underwhelming reception. His co-writer on the show, Matthew D’Ambrosio, blasted DeMayo’s ‘hypocritical’ comments.
In a since-deleted post on X, D’Ambrosio alleged that DeMayo was fired from the show for being unprofessional and being abusive emotionally and physically, He mocked DeMayo for constantly trying to be associated with the show instead of getting help. D’Ambrosio wrote (via Tumblr),
“If I were unceremoniously fired from a job for being both emotionally and physically abusive, I’d probably focus on getting help instead of constantly bringing up my involvement with said job.”
D’Ambrosio also alleged that DeMayo made up those lies about writers hating The Witcher books, to cover up his firing from the show. He wrote in a since-deleted tweet (via Geeks and Gamers),
“It’s pretty Cool™️ and Fun™️ to try and talk about how much you love your job and then get replies like this cause some asshole you used to work with made up a bunch of lies to your fanbase to cover up how he got fired for being an asshole and now that’s the narrative.”
Considering this controversy and his recent Marvel firing, DeMayo seems to always land himself in problematic situations, and thus, Marvel Studios wouldn’t want to carry his baggage with them. Thus, he is unlikely to return for future seasons of X-Men ’97 or any other MCU project down the line.
James Gunn Won’t Follow Beau DeMayo’s Footsteps for His DCU
James Gunn is currently shooting for Superman and has also mapped out how his DCU is going to be. In addition to live-action films, he is also developing various animated shows including Creature Commandoes which will hit this year on Max. With the MCU recently reviving the 90s X-Men animated series with X-Men ’97, a fan asked about the possibility of reviving the beloved Justice League Unlimited series on Threads.
Gunn replied that while he loves the uniqueness of X-Men ’97 and how it does not follow the current superhero trends, he would also like to do the same and not repeat what DeMayo did by reviving Justice League Unlimited. He wrote,
“X-Men ‘97 is fun because it’s unique and not desperately trying to follow the trends of everything around it. So I’d rather just keep doing that”
Gunn has always been about original stories and reinventing the genre and thus his comments are understandable. His Superman film led by David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan is deep into production and will release next year on July 11, 2025.
Fans can watch X-Men ’97 on Disney+.
