Marvel signs deal to bring Stan Lee back through digital technology and archival footage

Stan Lee was a beloved figure among Marvel fans and his death in 2018 was a huge blow. The co-creator of Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Black Panther, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, the X-Men and many more was seen as the father of Marvel and made iconic cameos in just about every Marvel movie out there.

Stan Lee’s final cameo in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was in Avengers: Endgame, released just a few months after his death. While subsequent Marvel projects have paid tribute to Lee, audiences have accepted that the era of the Stan Lee cameo is at an end. Or is it? THR reported today that Marvel Studios have signed a 20-year deal with Stan Lee Universe to “license the name and likeness of Lee for use in future feature films and television productions, as well as Disney theme parks, various ‘experiences’ and merchandising.“

Stan Lee Universe is a venture between Genius Brands International and POW! Entertainment. Genius Brands chairman and CEO Andy Heyward said that the deal, “really ensures that Stan, through digital technology and archival footage and other forms, will live in the most important venue, the Marvel movies, and Disney theme parks. It’s a broad deal.” Now, this doesn’t mean that a digital Stan Lee will suddenly be popping up in future MCU movies, but it does give Marvel Studios permission to use his name, voice, likeness and signature in movies and TV projects. “The audience revered Stan, and if it’s done with taste and class, and respectful of who he was, [uses of his likeness] will be welcomed,” Heyward said. “He is a beloved personality, and long after you and I are gone, he will remain the essence of Marvel.“

We’ve seen studios digitally resurrect people before in movies, such as Peter Cushing in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, but it almost always causes controversy. How would you feel about a digital Stan Lee appearing in future Marvel projects?