'Good Omens' Season 3 Transformed Into 90-Minute Finale Following Neil Gaiman Sexual Assault Allegations
The apocalypse is coming sooner than expected, in a great compression
If I had a nickel for every time the final season of an Amazon Prime Video series was turned into a single feature-length finale because of sexual misconduct allegations, I’d have two nickels. It’s not a lot but it’s also way too many and it has to stop. Stop being creeps. This time it’s Good Omens, whose creator and co-author of the source material Neil Gaiman, as well as showrunner, writer, and executive producer is the culprit, due to allegations made by several women, and has officially exited.
Good Omens stars David Tennant and Michael Sheen as two millennia-long best friends: fussy angel and trader or rare books Aziraphale (Sheen) and fast-living demon Crowley (Tennant) as they fight the apocalypse. Jon Hamm also stars among a litany of recurring co-stars and featured actors whose places in the opening credits appear when they themselves do. Who’s to appear in this finale movie is unclear. No one outside of Sheen and Tennant have been definitively discussed as appearing. Deadline lists Miranda Richardson and Frances McDormand but it seems to be based on their main positions in season one. That first season, which premiered in 2019 as an intended limited series was about averting Armageddon, dangerous prophecies, and the End of the World. Season two was “sweet and gentle”, but with a very bittersweet ending. Now in Now, what was supposed to be six episodes of 45-60 minutes of plot and plot resolution will now be condensed to 1.5 or 2 episodes The plans for Armageddon are going wrong, and now everyone has to do their best in and out-of-universe to make it right.
According to U.K.-based Tortoise Media, a woman named Scarlett alleged that Gaiman sexually assaulted her in New Zealand in February 2022, while she was working as a nanny to his child. A second woman, going by K, said that after meeting Gaiman at a Florida book signing in 2003, aged 18, she was submitted to rough sex with him, amid an otherwise consensual relationship, which she “neither wanted nor enjoyed.” Tortoise reported at least three other sexual assault allegations. Of course Gaiman, who co-wrote the original books with the late Terry Pratchett, denied them, but to save some face after pre-production paused in early September due to the allegations volunteered to step aside so it could be unpaused. Gaiman wrote material that will now be part of the series finale but of course will not be working on the production. In addition, his production company the Blank Corporation has withdrawn its involvement. A new writer will be brought in to finish up the work, but the search has not resulted in a hiring yet. Shooting is now set to start in early 2025 in Scotland.
Rob Wilkins of Narrativia, representing Terry Pratchett’s estate, as well as BBC Studios Productions’ head of comedy Josh Cole are executive producers as each entity produces the series. The finale is also produced by Amazon MGM Studios.
But indeed, this was not the first Prime Video series such decision was made for. Remember Transparent? In November 2017, Jeffrey Tambor was one of the first in the #MeToo wave to have been accused of sexual harassment, by former assistant Van Barnes and actress Trace Lyssett. Both accusers being trans women, Tambor left his Emmy-winning role as Maura Pfefferman within days of the second accusations. A three month investigation by Amazon was then conducted, making his removal official. 8 months later, creator Jill Soloway confirmed that season 5 would end with a feature-length musical finale. By April 2019 it was clarified that the feature-length musical finale that would kill off Maura would be all there is and no formal fifth season. It would premiere that fall.
Gaiman, who is the creator of DC/Vertigo’s Sandman and the Dead Boy Detectives, each of whom have been adapted for Netflix series, has been conspicuously absent from the former’s second season behind-the-scenes sneak peek video and in the video’s Tudum writeup.
