Steve Blackman was accused of displaying “toxic, bullying, manipulative and retaliatory behavior” in a human resources complaint by 12 former writers and support staff on Netflix’s ‘The Umbrella Academy.’
In response to a scathing Rolling Stone report detailing multiple allegations of toxic, bullying, phobic, manipulative and retaliatory behavior against The Umbrella Academy’s showrunner, Steve Blackman has responded.
Based on a comic series written by Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance and illustrated by Gabriel Bá, Blackman adapted the series for television, with the popular series launching in February 2019 on Netflix. The fourth and final season is expected August 8, 2024.
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“Over six years and four seasons overseeing thousands of crew, actors, and writers, Steve Blackman led The Umbrella Academy to become a beloved series with devoted fans, enthralling stories, and a dedicated team making it all possible,” a rep for the showrunner told RS in a statement.
“These allegations from a handful of disgruntled employees are completely false and outrageous, and in no way reflect the collaborative, respectful, and successful working environment Mr. Blackman has cultivated,” the statement concluded.
According to the Rolling Stone article, 12 former writers and support staff filed a complaint with human resources in January 2023 alleging a “long history of toxic, bullying, manipulative and retaliatory behavior” during the show’s production run.
The complaints alleged a wide range of different behaviors, including what was described as a “hot-and-cold” approach to employees (i.e., praising them to their face and badmouthing them behind their backs to others). Blackman was also accused of firing those who pushed back against his ideas, and even implementing writers’ ideas without giving proper credit or promotion.
He was called a “manipulative and chaotic showrunner” who encouraged “a toxic workplace by pitting staffers against one another,” as detailed by TheWrap. He was further accused of tossing out someone’s ideas if he was mad at them: “He was definitely into retaliation.”
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Elsewhere in the complaint, Blackman was called out for letting a female writing duo (they shared a salary as part of their deal) go shortly after one of them gave birth. About a month after she returned to work, the writers room was extended for an additional 10 weeks, but the duo’s contract was not extended.
Blackman’s rep defended this decision to RS by saying he’d worked with HR to ensure their contracts were fulfilled completely, saying the decision not to extend was “solely based on performance and budget.”
Additionally, Blackman was accused of comments perceived as lewd, sexist, homophobic, and transphobic. The latter is especially notable as Elliot Page transitioned during the run of The Umbrella Academy, with the show ultimately having his character transition, as well.
In talking about the Season 3 arc, Blackman told TVLine at the time he was “really proud” of the transition story, saying he was trying to tell a “pro-trans, authentic, sensitive” story “and show that families can accept trans people in their lives, and it does not have to be a negative thing, as it’s often portrayed in the media.”
Page was also appreciative of how his character’s story unfolded, saying at the time that “one of the most special things about this is how it’s handled.”
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However, in the complaint to HR, Blackman allegedly sent via text to an unspecified individual involved with the production, “Elliot wants to come out as trans on the show. As Ivan. Oh my f—king God. Kill me now.”
Blackman’s representative argued that this wasn’t a transphobic comment, but rather the showrunner expressing frustration because all of the scripts for Season 3 had already been written, and this transition arc would require major rewrites.
In response to the cited complaints, a production company behind the show, NBC-owned Universal Content Productions, launched an investigation in Spring 2023. The only claims they substantiated were that he made “inappropriate and unprofessional remarks” and used “foul and derogatory language.”
In counter to that, several unnamed sources — and former staffers — told RS they were not contacted by UCP as part of their investigation, which RS called “less than thorough,” despite being named in the original complaint. UCP told Deadline they had “no further comment” about the RS story.
