The dispute between comic book creators and the remuneration they receive for the blockbuster adaptations of their work has been generating plenty of headlines recently, with some of the biggest names in the industry weighing into the argument.
Ed Brubaker admitted that seeing ads for The Falcon and the Winter Solider made him sick, while Marvel even hit Stan Lee’s family with legal action in an effort to retain creative control over the beloved icon’s back catalogue of instantly recognizable superheroes.
The latest to speak out is Joe Casey, who revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that he has very mixed and bittersweet emotions over seeing America Chavez make the jump into live-action next month when Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness comes to theaters.
“The fact is Marvel owns America Chavez. That’s not in dispute on any level, but there are still systemic flaws in the way that creators are neither respected nor rewarded. Marvel has paid me nothing for America Chavez, not only for appearing in the Doctor Strange sequel, but in numerous animated TV episodes, for the numerous action figures they’ve made of her, for video games she’s appeared in. They seem to be fine with that.
For me, it’s not about money. It’s not even about the respect. I would never expect to be respected by a corporation. If I’m in a position where I can afford not to take their insult of an offer, and be able to talk about it, maybe the next guy — where that kind of money could change their life — would get a fair shot of receiving that money. I’m a happy guy. I’m not disgruntled. I’m not bitter. Because I know this is how this goes. I also know, this is how you change things, by talking about it.”
There’s clearly a sea change brewing, and given how Marvel Studios has been vocal in putting diversity, representation, and fairness at the forefront, you’d have to image that comic book writers and artists will begin receiving a heftier slice of the pie in the future, especially when the MCU regularly churns out billion-dollar box office successes based on their hard work.
