Marvel settles with four artists in superhero copyright fight | Inquirer Entertainment

Marvel settles with four artists in superhero copyright fight

/ 03:05 PM June 10, 2023
Marvel

A general view of the premiere for the movie “Captain Marvel” in Los Angeles, California, USA, March 4, 2019. Image: Reuters/Mario Anzuoni

Disney’s Marvel has agreed to end its court battles with four artists who attempted to reclaim copyright interests in superheroes they co-created including Iron Man, Ant-Man and Captain Marvel, according to federal court filings published on Friday, Jue 9.

The filings said Marvel would drop its lawsuits against Larry Lieber and the estates of Don Heck, Gene Colan and Don Rico with prejudice, which means they cannot be refiled. A Disney spokesperson and an attorney for the artists said they had reached an “amicable resolution.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Marvel did not appear to have settled with the estate of comic book artist Steve Ditko, which is seeking to reclaim his share of copyrights in Spider-Man and Doctor Strange. Both sides asked a Manhattan federal court for pretrial wins in that case last month.

Under the Copyright Act, a creator can terminate a copyright assignment after decades in certain circumstances. Marvel sued the artists, who wrote and illustrated Marvel comics in the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s, after they sought to terminate and reclaim copyrights related to several superheroes.

FEATURED STORIES

Other superheroes the artists said they co-created include Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye and Blade.

Marvel had argued the artists’ works were made for hire, which it said prevented them from being able to recapture the copyrights.

Marvel won a similar case at a US appeals court in 2013 involving illustrator Jack Kirby. That case was later settled as the US Supreme Court was set to consider whether to take it up. AP/ra

RELATED STORIES:

‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ spins new spider worlds

‘The Marvels’ teaser shows glimpse of Korean star Park Seo-joon

Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Your subscription has been successful.

Subscribe to our daily newsletter

By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.

Read Next
Don't miss out on the latest news and information. facebook follow

Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.

TAGS: Ant-Man, Captain Marvel, Copyright, Iron Man, Marvel
For feedback, complaints, or inquiries, contact us.
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Your subscription has been successful.

Subscribe to our entertainment news

By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.



© Copyright 1997-2023 INQUIRER.net | All Rights Reserved

We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. By continuing, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. To find out more, please click this link.