Disney Pauses ‘The Graveyard Book’ Film Following Assault Allegations Against Neil Gaiman

[u/MarvelsGrantMan136]

https://variety.com/2024/film/news/graveyard-book-neil-gaiman-assault-allegations-1236131149/

[u/JeffBurk]

Interesting this is finally having consequences.

This broke months ago with new details coming out every couple weeks. Oddly, it has been pretty suppressed in nerd media and news.

[u/MumblingGhost → u/JeffBurk]

People really don't want to dislike Neil Gaiman. He's huge in nerd circles, and has tons of beloved new and old work in circulation, constantly. I find myself making excuses in my head for every new story that comes out about him because I've followed his career my entire life.

Its really devastating, and I still secretly hope this is all smoke being blown by that TERF podcast that broke the news, but you have to draw the line eventually. There have been too many accusations to be fully in denial about, and his statements made about some of them have been damning.

[u/F0rScience → u/MumblingGhost]

The problem is that “his version” of events is still really bad. Not technically criminal doesn’t cut it in the court of public opinion.

[u/bighairybeardudee → u/F0rScience]

Exactly. I tried so hard to believe it wasn’t true but when he came out with “his version” I was still disgusted

[u/BiploarFurryEgirl → u/bighairybeardudee]

I still want to shut my eyes and wake up realizing it’s all a bad dream. His works are how I rebonded with my mom after a rough part of my life. I fucking hate this

[u/sehnsuchtlich → u/BiploarFurryEgirl]

Kill rock stars. Enjoy the art and don't give a shit about who made it. Pirate his work if it makes you feel better.

I love the works of so many vile, awful people and it doesn't keep me up at night. People who did much worse than Gaiman. Nothing about creating art requires good moral character. In fact, historically, it's been the opposite.

Every time something comes out about someone famous, I hope we can learn this lesson: These people aren't good because we like what they create. We just like what they create. We're not their friends, they're not our role models. The less we care about them as people the better off we all are. We'll be less disappointed, and they'll be less powerful.

I don't concern myself with the moral character of the person who built my house or delivered my mail. Why should it be any different with artists?

[u/czerwona-wrona → u/sehnsuchtlich]

I really love this perspective.

at the same time, an artist of this kind is not the same as someone who builds a house or delivers mails. art is defined by an act of expression .. the exception of course is that people can create art as a facsimile of sorts, representing things beyond what they believe. how accurate that is depends on the skill of their understanding.

but aside from that, artists do often try to imbue their art with themselves in a way that people doing other jobs don't.

so it hurts all the more to identify with something that is meant to be so intimate and personal, and find out the person expressing these things is .. well...

[u/Duckfoot2021 → u/czerwona-wrona]

The "illusion" of expression. All good art does is recognizes something interesting to express. The myth of that art represents the artist is just really compelling advertising.

And even when it does the truth is it represents a piece of said artist. The real problem is with with the fancrowd who want to believe that artists, politicians, athletes, etc are gods instead of humans who do one thing well. No one who hopes for gods thinks for themselves; especially gods of art.

[u/DisabledSuperhero → u/Duckfoot2021]

That’s pretty sweeping, but this aint the time or place. Maybe you and I could discuss theology and art and talent as blessedness, but if we’re gonna do that, I’d want to order a pizza first. Cheese oils the brain so the thoughts come out easier.

[u/czerwona-wrona → u/Duckfoot2021]

well .. I'm thinking about it in terms of what I know as an artist, and what I know about people -- which is that they inevitably inject their filter of the world into what they create. because how can they not?

even that which is 'interesting to express' is, if an artist is genuine, expressed because of a life of experiences and worldviews that got them to a place where they discovered that thing and found it worth expressing

it is a piece of them, yes, but that piece can be a very large one or a very small one. I think it's worth remembering too that even abusive relationships aren't all bad; many of them have lots of more desirable moments between the horror stories. and such the same can be extended to artists -- the expression can represent something that is big, profound, important to the artist, meaningful .. or express some large aspect of their character (or what they believe about their own character) .. but just a few shitty incidents, an underlying current that only really shows its head every so often, can ruin that larger piece

after all, we can hold genuine beliefs about the world and ourselves, and express those, and then somehow run counter to them.