A Stan Lee documentary honoring the famed comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer was announced by Disney+ on his 100th birthday. Stan Lee passed five years ago on December 18 at 95 but left behind a legacy of characters that spans well over a half-century. He collaborated with other iconic creators such as Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, John Romita Sr., John Buscema, and many others in his lifetime to help create characters that are recognized in nearly every part of the world. From Spider-Man, Thor, The Avengers, Doctor Strange, Fantastic Four, X-Men, and many more, the list goes on.
It was in the last couple of decades of his life when Marvel, after years of tumultuous financial times that led to fragmented ownership across various types of media, found a new home with Disney. Although a part of Marvel is still shared with Sony, essentially what has been referred to as the Spider-Verse and encompasses characters directly related to Spider-Man, the bulk of its properties now reside with Disney which has created what has been called the most profitable movie franchise in history. Multiple collaborations with Sony allowed Spider-Man to rejoin alongside many of his other famous characters on the big screen following Disney’s other purchases that brought them all back under one roof again.
100 years of dreaming. 100 years of creating. 100 years of Stan Lee.
— Marvel Entertainment (@Marvel) December 28, 2022
Stan Lee, an Original documentary, is streaming 2023 on @DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/2ufWu77vB8
Life Beyond Marvel
Stan Lee provided guest cameos in many of the Marvel Movies, animated cartoons, and comic books as well as ventured on his own to create new characters with a company he helped co-found in 2001 called POW! Entertainment. Interestingly enough Disney does not own the rights to Stan Lee’s likeness, IP, or licensing, a company called Genius Brands International does. According to Variety, the company is signed on to co-produce the new Stan Lee documentary which is set to stream sometime in 2023 on Disney+.
“The entertainment company owns the rights to the name, voice, likeness, signature, and licensing of the intellectual property relating to Lee and is signed on to co-executive produce the “Stan Lee” documentary.”
Meanwhile, POW! Entertainment continues to operate Stan Lee’s Twitter account called TheRealStanLee and is honoring his 100th birthday with messages from fans.
To honor Stan's centennial, let’s fill this post with memories! Please share your favorite Stan anecdotes, cameos & stories.
— Stan Lee (@TheRealStanLee) December 28, 2022
We can't wait to share more of Stan's work with you & we're thankful that your support will keep Stan's memory alive for years to come.#StanLee100 pic.twitter.com/t6DaYM2uPC