• Stan Lee stated he was “heartbroken” that he did not copyright any Marvel characters himself.
• For many years, the creator wrote tales and characters that have been solely owned by Marvel Comics.
• “There wasn’t a lot I may do about it,” he stated.

Within the final 40 years, Marvel Comics characters have grow to be popular culture juggernauts with numerous TV exhibits, motion pictures, and video video games primarily based on heroes just like the X-Males, Spider-Man, Captain America, and Iron Man.

After all, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has additionally grow to be a massively worthwhile money-making machine within the palms of Kevin Feige at Marvel Studios and Disney. However none of that might be attainable with out the comedian guide writers and illustrators who created them within the first place.

One such author is the enduring Stan Lee, who died in 2018 however left behind an enormous physique of labor at Marvel Comics.

A brand new Disney+ documentary, merely titled “Stan Lee,” seems on the characters he created and the way he helped form Marvel into the massively profitable firm it’s right now.

In it, Lee opened up about regretting the truth that he by no means sought to copyright the various characters he got here up with throughout his time working for Marvel Comics. In any case, Spider-Man is simply the tip of the iceberg in the case of the costumed crusaders that he helped create.

“I at all times resented the truth that once I wrote these tales, I by no means thought, ‘Gee, I should try to copyright one thing myself and personal it.’ It at all times belonged to the corporate,” stated Lee. “So, from a enterprise standpoint, that was a mistake. I used to be heartbroken. There wasn’t a lot I may do about it.”

Lee additionally opened up about how he was handled when Marvel was purchased by a brand new proprietor, although he does not specify which one. The corporate was purchased by New World Leisure in 1986, earlier than later being bought to MacAndrews & Forbes in 1989.

“By this time I had been at Marvel for a few years,” stated Lee. “I had had a lifetime job, and I used to be rattling effectively value it. However the firm was bought.”

“One of many house owners of the brand new firm stated, ‘Stan, don’t be concerned, you are going to be higher than ever,’” Lee continued. “And he was gonna give everybody new contracts. So the brand new contract I used to be provided was, as an alternative of a lifetime contract, a two-year contract, which made me very sad.”

Lee was ultimately given an honorary function inside Marvel, one which reportedly paid him $1 million a 12 months.

Lee famous: “Marvel lastly settled issues. They gave me a title, chairman emeritus, which was an honorary title. I used to be very blissful about that.”