Image: Marvel Studios
Marvel Studios has mysteriously fired X-Men ‘97’s showrunner just one week before its big premiere.
In a rather unusual move in the world of streaming television, Marvel Studios has fired the showrunner of X-Men ‘97 just one week before its premiere on Disney+. Ex-showrunner Beau DeMayo created the series and had already completed work on its second season, but departed the series without so much as a statement this week. DeMayo’s Instagram account and company email were also reportedly deleted, making the whole situation very mysterious indeed.
Marvel fires X-Men ‘97’s showrunner ahead of its premiere
According to The Hollywood Reporter, X-Men ‘97 creator and showrunner Beau DeMayo had finished up writing work on Season 2 of the series earlier this month. DeMayo was then making plans to attend the series’ premiere in Hollywood today, on March 13, and even talking about Season 3 with his creative team - suggesting that he had no idea he was about to let go so abruptly.
Marvel reportedly fired DeMayo early last week, at which point cast and crew were informed that he was no longer tied to the project and his company email was deactivated. DeMayo also took down his Instagram account, but no reason for his firing was given by either him or Marvel. It’s an especially unusual move considering that the series premieres on March 20, and Marvel would have had plans for DeMayo to conduct press work for the show this week.
X-Men ‘97 is a sequel to the classic X-Men: The Animated Series, which originally ran from 1992 to 1997. The series took viewers through a number of iconic X-Men comic book storylines before ending with the climactic death of Professor Xavier. This series picks up from where the original left off, with the X-Men coming back together to face another threat. Many surviving voice actors from the original series will also return to reprise their roles.
X-Men ‘97’s 10-episode first season will hit Disney+ on March 20, with a second season already in the works - presumably with a new showrunner now.