JC Lee, Stan Lee’s Daughter, Defends Sony in Spider-Man Split
Joan Celia "JC" Lee — the daughter of late Marvel Comics icon Stan Lee — has come out on Sony's side of the studio's split with Marvel concerning the Spider-Man films. Earlier this week, movie headlines revealed the franchise was staying with Sony as the company apparently cut Marvel out of the deal.
The co-creator of Spider-Man, The Avengers and other influential comic book properties, Stan Lee died last year at the age of 95. Read JC Lee's full statement down toward the bottom of this post.
In fact, judging by her pronouncement, it appears the surviving Lee is just fine with Spider-Man ending up with Sony — or practically any other studio — as long as it's not the Disney-owned Marvel Entertainment, as she laid out to TMZ Thursday, Aug. 22 (via ScreenRant). "Whether it's Sony or someone else's, the continued evolution of Stan's characters and his legacy deserves multiple points of view," she said.
But why is that? It's at least partially due to the fact that, after the comic book maker died, "no one from Marvel or Disney reached out to me," she added. Further, she charged that Marvel and Disney have "commoditized my father’s work and never shown him or his legacy any respect or decency."
It was only four years ago when it was first announced Spider-Man would join the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with Sony's Spider-Man films to occur within the celluloid world of MCU. Of course, Sony had already made five Spider-Man films without Marvel to that point, beginning with 2002’s Spider-Man.
But after Tuesday's revelation that the entertainment giants weren't able to agree on terms to continue the partnership, it looks like JC Lee felt the time was right to air her unfiltered thoughts about Marvel.
Marvel and Disney seeking total control of my father's creations must be checked and balanced by others who, while still seeking to profit, have genuine respect for Stan Lee and his legacy. Whether it's Sony or someone else's, the continued evolution of Stan's characters and his legacy deserves multiple points of view. When my father died, no one from Marvel or Disney reached out to me. From day one, they have commoditized my father’s work and never shown him or his legacy any respect or decency. In the end, no one could have treated my father worse than Marvel and Disney's executives.
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