Marvel film & TV rights shell game - who owns what? 5 5

[media_junkie]

I still think WB screwed up by letting Cavill go.

[theCapraAegagrus]

On 7/21/2021 at 11:50 AM, media_junkie said:

I still think WB screwed up by letting Cavill go.

Last I knew, he still has 2 films on contract.

[media_junkie]

On 7/21/2021 at 11:53 AM, theCapraAegagrus said:

Last I knew, he still has 2 films on contract.

I doubt we see him suit up as Superman again.  Which is a pity.

[Bosco685]

Oh boy!

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Disney’s Marvel unit is suing to hold onto Avengers characters including Iron Man, Spider-Man, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Falcon, and others.

 

The complaints, which The Hollywood Reporter has obtained, come against the heirs of some late comic book geniuses including Stan Lee, Steve Ditko, and Gene Colan. The suits seek declaratory relief that these blockbuster characters are ineligible for copyright termination as works made for hire. If Marvel loses, Disney would be letting ownership of characters worth billions slip from its fingertips.

 

Last month, the administrator of Ditko’s estate filed a notice of termination on Spider Man, which first appeared in comic book form in 1962. Under the termination provisions of copyright law, authors or their heirs can reclaim rights once granted to publishers after waiting a statutory set period of time. According to the termination notice, Marvel would lose rights to its iconic character in June 2023.

 

[Bosco685]

Ahhh - The Ditko estate is what flamed up Disney/Marvel.

 

[Bosco685]

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The MCU has long been impacted by rights issues that were beyond its control. This primarily changed once Disney bought Marvel in 2012, but Spider-Man's rights remained at Sony, and Universal still would be involved in any solo Hulk movie. It was only due to Disney's acquisition of 20th Century Fox that the Fantastic Four and X-Men characters became accessible to Marvel Studios. The latest legal battle facing Marvel is regarding the heirs of Stan Lee, Gene Colan, and Steve Ditko attempting to gain control of the Marvel characters each man created. The list of characters whose futures are in question range from Iron Man and Spider-Man to Black Widow and Falcon. Marvel Studios is now suing the heirs and claiming that each character was created as work for hire, making them the property of Marvel and not their creators.

 

These lawsuits could drastically impact the MCU's future beyond Phase 4 depending on how they are settled. Previous lawsuits of this type have been filed by the heir of comic book creators, with DC previously facing a similar suit regarding Superman. The typical outcome of these lawsuits is that the companies/studios (in this case Marvel) retain their rights to use the characters, usually in exchange for further compensation to the creators or their heirs. If Marvel's lawsuit over the rights to these various Avengers characters plays out similarly, then the MCU's future and that of the individual characters in question shouldn't change at all.

 

[▫️]

On 9/25/2021 at 9:55 AM, Bosco685 said:

 

What is sad is that the families of the creators will lose. I heard Marvel’s daddy has a decent lawyer. They will show it was all work for hire. They may be correct on that point and will win based off it but man that shows a serious lack of integrity. 

[TupennyConan]

On 9/26/2021 at 6:50 AM, Oddball said:

 but man that shows a serious lack of integrity. 

Why?

[▫️]

On 9/26/2021 at 9:32 AM, TupennyConan said:

Why?

If I owned a company and one of my employees created something that made me literally billions of dollars, I can afford to share the wealth despite the fine print that says he just gets paid by the page. It’s doing the right thing. 

[Bosco685]

On 9/26/2021 at 9:32 AM, TupennyConan said:

Why?

There was an article recently how it is common practice in the comic book industry if a creation becomes a movie or TV show success there is a bonus clause to recognize such contributions.

Unfortunately, Disney has been the strictest in not following this practice.

 

Edited September 26, 2021 by Bosco685

[Crimebuster]

I find it almost impossible to believe Disney will lose the rights to these characters. If they think there's any chance of losing, I'm sure they will settle with the creators/estates out of court to keep the rights. Best case they have to do this and the creators get some money from this mess. 

[Bosco685]

On 9/26/2021 at 10:13 PM, Crimebuster said:

I find it almost impossible to believe Disney will lose the rights to these characters. If they think there's any chance of losing, I'm sure they will settle with the creators/estates out of court to keep the rights. Best case they have to do this and the creators get some money from this mess. 

Recognizing how far Disney will go to defend its copyright ( School played ‘The Lion King’ at a fundraiser: Disney licensing fined it for not having usage rights ) we all know how far it will go beyond the norm to protect billions of dollars in IP.

But this probably all comes down to profit sharing and character creation bonus payouts. So like you noted, in the end worst-case Disney offers a settlement to quiet this down. Though with the new CEO how he is going after Scarlett Johansson to make a point and changing Marvel Studios' actor contracts going forward, this could end up in a bloody legal fight.

[Bosco685]

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Netflix’s Marvel series are coming home. Social media has been abuzz this morning about a notification added to the six Defenders universe shows, that they would only be available on Netflix until March 1.

 

Sources confirm to Deadline that Netflix’s license for Marvel’s Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, The Punisher, Iron Fist and The Defenders team-up limited series is ending and the rights to the shows is reverting to Disney. The company is keeping mum about its distribution plans for the suite of series; they are expected to be announced the shows’ new streaming home soon.

 

Made by Disney for Netflix in a different era of the streaming age under a different regime at the now-defunct Marvel Television, the series are not a slam-dunk for flagship Disney+ because of mature content, especially in Jessica Jones and Luke Cage. Still, Disney+ feels like the best fit, being the designated Marvel streaming home, and the platform’s recent Marvel series Hawkeye even featured a villain from the Defenders universe, Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin, as the post-cancellation ban on Disney’s use of characters had expired.

 

[Bosco685]

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An SEC filing from 2006 notes Universal Studios' agreement to distribute The Incredible Hulk under the same terms as a similar deal with Paramount:

 

"Universal Studios has agreed to distribute Marvel’s film The Incredible Hulk and sequels on essentially the same terms as those on which Paramount has agreed to distribute the other films financed and produced under the film facility."

 

The aforementioned SEC deal with Paramount notes its distribution agreement "for an initial period of 15 years commencing on the initial Theatrical Exhibition of such Picture:"

 

As The Incredible Hulk hit theaters in June 2008, the 15-year period indicates Disney will regain distribution rights to the character in June 2023, at which point Marvel Studios would be able to begin production on a Hulk movie that Disney themselves would distribute.

 

[TupennyConan]

Retire Mark Ruffalo. 

[Bosco685]

On 8/13/2022 at 7:12 AM, TupennyConan said:

Retire Mark Ruffalo. 

I dislike what they have done with Hulk. Such a joke.

[Bosco685]

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The Direct got our hands on the new Spider-Man-centric book, With Great Power, from author Sean O’Connell, which revealed two characters who still have shared rights between Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios.

 

The first character still wrapped up in these dealings is Wilson Fisk aka Kingpin.

 

Fisk was also used as the main antagonist in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, though it's important to point out that the rights regarding animation compared to live-action are very different.

 

The second of these shared characters is none other than Jessica Drew's Spider-Woman. The character will be appearing in animated form in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, as played by Issa Rae.

 

[Bosco685]

 

[Bosco685]

 

[Bosco685]

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Marvel has reached a settlement agreement in a legal battle over the right to franchise characters Spider-Man and Doctor Strange.

 

 In a new report about the case, it's being said that Marvel managed to come to terms with attorneys representing the company and estate of comic book creator and icon Steve Ditko this week, ending a wider net of legal challenges going back to 2021.

 

The original case started with a back-and-forth battle between Marvel and the estates of late comic book creators Gene Colan, Steve Ditko, Don Heck, and Don Rico, with characters like Iron Man, Spider-Man, Daredevil, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hulk, Doctor Strange and other all in contention. 

 

In June of this year, most of the lawsuits were settled – except for the portion of it involving Ditko's estate. the final portion of the legal challenge continued, with Marvel being represented by Dan Petrocelli and Molly Lens of O'Melveny; the representative for Ditko's estate, Patrick Ditko, was represented by attorney Marc Toberoff. 

 

With this latest settlement, it seems that Marvel has finally cleared up the issues with its character rights in full. Ditko's estate had been holding out over rights to issues of Amazing Fantasy and Strange Tales – the two comic book titles that served as the first appearances of Spider-Man and Doctor Strange, respectively. No word on the terms that Marvel and Ditko's estate have agreed on, only that it is "an amicable settlement" and that we can expect "a stipulation of dismissal with prejudice to be filed in the coming weeks."