The only remaining top-tier characters not fully owned by Marvel Studios include Spider-Man and most of his supporting players and rogues gallery, many of which are retained by Sony Pictures for preferred appearances in its own "Sony's Universe of Marvel Characters," already home to Venom (Tom Hardy) and soon Morbius (Jared Leto). Another villain Marvel Studios gets is Galactus, who first appeared in aFantastic Fourcomic series in 1966. Sony Pictures still owns the rights to Spider-Man, making three movies in the 2000s and two reboots with Andrew Garfield in 2012 and 2014. Copyright 2023 ComicBook.com. Last appearances of both characters was in 2007, which can explain the seemingly random development updates for a Venom solo project, Spider-Man 4 and Ghost Rider 2. Although Apocalypse is mainly an X-Men villain, he also poses a threat to the entire Marvel Universe. This arrogant, quick-witted character has been a hot commodity since Ryan Reynolds' film debut as the character in the then Fox-owned Marvel films. The company has now effectively gained ownership of former Fox television networks as well as properties like Deadpool and Fox-owned Marvel characters. Marvel next releases Avengers: Endgame, out April 26. They have also teamed up with the Avengers to take on foes together. - December 14, 2017 11:43 am EST. 3, a movie that is still quite a ways off, the director might have enough time on his hands to add the character into his movie's story. The trail for a "Merc with a Mouth" solo project went cold during production of Blade: Trinity. Here, CBR lists the top 15 characters previously owned by Fox that are finally home. NEXT: MCU: 5 Reasons Were More Excited For WandaVision (& 5 For The Falcon & The Winter Soldier). Now, it all seems like a done deal. A cosmic being of unsatiable hunger andtechnically older thanthe universe itself, Galactus is a very massive threat in the comic books, and one that could pose quite the danger in the MCU. So for those who have trouble keeping track of which company owns what, these are the characters that Marvel Studios will get back once this becomes a done deal. In 2019, the studio will releaseThe New Mutants, an X-Men horror film. They probably wont produce another origin story right away for the same reason they didnt make a Spider-Man origin story after getting the rights to that character. Thankfully, we've had a helpful infographic by The Geek Twins to give us an easy visual breakdown of who own all the various Marvel Comics characters - timely info to have, after the recent Fox/Disney deal: This chart has actually been around for a quite awhile; it's been regularly updated as ownership rights have changed hands over years. In this latest episode, we talk about the new Toy Story 4 trailer, we're breaking down James Gunn's return to Marvel Studios and more! In the comics, the Fantastic Four have interacted with plenty of characters from the MCU. For the longest time, most Marvel fans just operated under the assumption that the Marvel characters that Fox owned would never return home to Disney and Marvel Studios. 13/15 DR. DOOM. Ever since the X-Men appeared in the comic books, Magneto has been there, ever the thorn in their sides. All rights reserved. In 2019, Disney acquired 20th Century Fox, which includes all of its entertainment assets. Moving away from X-Men and into the territory of the Fantastic Four, we have this awesome piece byJao Picart. If Wolverine is introduced to the MCU, he will be played by a new actor, and he just might finally wear a comic book-accurate costume. Currently splitting his time between Madrid and Chicago, Stephen Barker has been a staff writer at Screen Rant since 2020. As an interesting tidbit (which will be elaborated upon shortly) during an alternate ending of the first Blade, a shadowy figure on a distant rooftop wrapped in rags has said to be the Marvel's resident vampire Morbius. Keep in mind the project was just last year, so if you had hopes of Wolverine and Punisher sorting out their differences on the big screen-like yours truly-it'll be some time. With a sequel coming next year, many fans are still very much looking forward to see the merc with a mouth's next big screen story. Strange, Hawkeye, Power Pack and Shang-Chi. The cosmic entity known as the Phoenix has been at the center of X-Men comic book stories for a very long time. Although it was always closely associated with Jean Grey, the Phoenix also managed to become a very big presence in the Marvel Universe, from being worshipped as a god to being a member of a team of Avengers that operated millions of years in the past. This way, Disney wouldn't have to buy back individual character rights -- it would all return home in one fell swoop. It's hard to make that mask work in real life, but by shortening the points and making it more armored,Pastrana has provided a unique take on it that just might work in the MCU. Fox don't own all mutants. They also began plans on a Gambitfilm starring Channing Tatum, anX-Forcefilm, and a potential X-23 film. But you might also recall that another version of Quicksilver also appeared in recent X-Men movies. It is the final Marvel character to be given to another studio before Marvel created its own movie studio. Marvel's first family of superheroes is finally home. Now that the Professor can join the MCU, he can finally be portrayed as something other than just a teacher and leader. Once again, we have John Krasinski and Emily Blunt in the roles of Reed and Sue, but Shiekh has opted to cast Harry Styles as the Human Torch. The Shi'ar haven't featured in an X-Men movie yet, but they might. The Fantastic Four's return is one that Marvel fans have been waiting for a long time. With all of the unbelievable updates getting announced about the next Spider-Man movie, particularly the news about Jamie Foxx reprising his role as Electro, which would change the MCU in so many different ways, the rights to the web-slinger are brain-fryingly confusing. Sony still owns Spider-Man, which is whySpider-Man: Homecomingstarts off with the Sony logo. AfterThe Amazing Spider-Man 2disappointed financially, Sony negotiated a deal with Marvel that would allow Spider-Man to appear in the MCU. Doctor Octopus. With the rights now at Fox, there may be new life or even a Cable/Deadpool project at some point. This has led to countless franchises, reboots, and most of all, audience confusion. So far, she has been limited to theX-Menseries of films, being portrayed byHalle Berry inX-Men,X2,X-Men: The Last Stand, andX-Men: Days of Future Past. ks. As for why Marvel can include Quicksilver. Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow doing a crotch . Next up is another piece by Jason Pastrana that, while not explicitly described as an MCU design, would fit perfectly for a potential Marvel Studios adaptation of Mystique. Why is this such a big deal? He has a long history and rivalry with Reed Richards and Tony Stark, and he has fought the Avengers on many occasions, on a cosmic and temporal scale. But now that Disney has regained control of the rights, the Silver Surfer could hit the big screenvery soon. Copyright 2023 Endgame360 Inc. All Rights Reserved. Under Disney and Marvel's care, the duo could finally be allowedto shine on the big screen the way they were always meant to be. His favorite Avenger is Captain America, and that was long before the character starred in a very successful film franchise. Here's the second piece by Stuart Cooper (who has quite a few entries on this list) that is as strange as it is interesting. 3 in 2020. 10 Female Marvel Characters Who Need Their Own Solo Movies. In fact, Marvel Studios now basically has access to every single comic book character you can think of except for those owned by Sony. The problem then was that Marvel's movie rights to its characters had been sold off in the 1990s to different companies, leaving their entire comic book universe shattered in a hodgepodge of legal quagmires. The power couple of Rogue and Gambit have long been a staple of the X-Men comic books, and they were given even more popularity thanks to their roles in the '90s animated series starring the merry band of mutants. Due to outdated contracts and loopholes, Marvel has their top tier characters at Columbia Pictures, Lions Gate Entertainment, New Line Cinema and the aforementioned, Fox. NOTE: Since the time of writing this, the rights to Daredevil, Elektra, Ghost Rider, Punisher,Bladeand Man-Thing have all reverted back to Marvel Studios. All the latest gaming news, game reviews and trailers. If you're . The first thing that really sticks out about this design is the coloring, which takes the villains' classic palette, mutes it, adds some darker purpleand grey as the main colors and keeps some of the flashiness with a bright cape. Ang Lee's Hulk (thanks, Universal!). figures collector, and he's rapidly running out of shelf space. In fact, the empire of aliens had a big role to play in "The Dark Phoenix" saga, a comic book that the X-Men's next big movie Dark Phoenixis based on. These were the original five, the first X-Men to study, train and fight under the leadership of Professor X. The short gloves are also a nice choice, and we also love the way the collar connects to the mask. Though we only see down to the shoulders, there's a lot of cool stuff going on with this design, and from what we can tell, it combines three of Cyclops' most notable designs into one, making for a great amalgam of iconic looks with a realistic vibe that fits perfectly with other designs of the MCU. Marvel characters often have a confusing cinematic history because of the movie rights between the MCU, Sony, and Fox. It's a very real possibility that the third Guardians film could feature an appearance from the Silver Surfer, setting him up to be a big part of the cosmic side of the MCU as it moves forward. Strange and Spider-Man's MCU designs. though there were a lot of different actors whoalmost starred in the first X-Men movie, the final product resulted in Hugh Jackman being cast as the now iconic Wolverine. ______________________________________________________, Source: Comic Book Resources, Marvel, IMDB, NY Times, Variety. The previous piece by Jao Picart depicted an MCU version of the Fantastic Four, and this design shows us what their arch nemesis might look like alongside them. For example, there was a theory that Marvel might adapt the 2004 comicseriesAvengers Disassembledfor the fourthAvengersfilm. The Phoenix was awoken inside Jean Grey in X-Men: Apocalypse, and the fiery entity is set to take center stage in Dark Phoenix. Covering the hottest movie and TV topics that fans want. MCU Movies and Disney + Shows. To avoid going bankrupt in the '90s, Marvel Comics sold these rights to companies like Sony (Spider-Man) and 20th Century Fox (X-Men, Fantastic Four). Disney-Fox Deal. Many people wonder why there is so many differences in Marvel films. Even when Hugh Jackman played the character in Fox's movies, fans were hoping that his Wolverine could one day clash with the Avengers something even the actor hoped for. Wait then again, should another studio (that's not Marvel) be in charge of a project like that? Generally considered to be one of the greatest Marvel antagonists,IGN ranked Galactus as the fifth best comic book villain of all time (and thats not even just Marvel villains). But they could very well produce aFantastic Fourmovie that skips over their origin. The rights to aquatic superhero Namor are similarly tied up at Universal, but messy legal entanglements make ownership of his rights "not as a clean or clear as the majority of the other characters," Feige said in 2018. Answer (1 of 6): To be clear, Fox doesn't own the X-Men. On top of a cool costume, Pastrana also does a great job of giving us a realistic take on what an actor might look like as the character while still retaining the fur that priorX-Men films have left out in favor of blue skin. It has led to tons of differentconfirmations and speculations, but anything is possible as Marvel Studios now has access to many of the characters it has been trying to get its hands on for more than ten years. More than 1000 Marvel characters are owned by Sony, with the possibility of more. In one fell swoop, the blockbuster $71-billion mega-deal brings nearly the entire stable of Marvel superheroes and villains under one owner, with marquee Fox-owned characters like the X-Men . As Marvel continues to struggle to introduce villains who are truly menacing and memorable, the biggest upside to this sale may be the ability to draw on theFantastic Fourcomic villains after the defeat of Thanos. Next is another Jason Pastranapiece, this intimidating-looking Gambit design that makes the character feel very, very dangerous. Galactus, the devourer of worlds, first appeared in the Fantastic Four comics, which tied him to the rights of the team of superheroes. gz. Answer (1 of 3): Warner Brothers owns the entirety of the DC roster as they are the parent company of DC comics. Other upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies include Black Panther on February 16, 2018, Ant-Man and the Wasp on July 6, 2018, Captain Marvel on March 8, 2019, the fourth Avengers movie on May 3, 2019, the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming on July 5, 2019, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. Stuart Cooper is at it again with another cool fan-cast/costume design, this time with Stephen Lang as Magneto. And this causes problems when you want big team-up movies. It's been estimated that around 62 Marvel characters will appear in the Joe and Anthony Russo-directed film, and reportedly one scene will see 30 of them appear side-by-side. Thats when Marvel Studios opened its doors and the company stopped giving characters to other studios. Visual Guide to Marvel Character Rights (The Geek Twins) T he first visual guide takes place before the pending Disney-Fox deal. We also like the small adjustments made to balance the color and make everything more tactical and realistic-looking, creatinganideal MCU design for the character that we would love to see in action. Specifically, the head-piece works perfect with the redesigned shirt and doesn't feel too out of place, the same goes for the character's signature jacket and knee-padded boots. . Though we doubt Joaquin Phoenix will portray Wolverine in the near future with his current role as The Joker, this fan-design byJames Hollandis still a rad "what if" for the character. Universal previously distributed 2003's Hulk and Marvel Studios' sophomore effort, 2008's Edward Norton-led Incredible Hulk. Since they had been featured in the comics as both X-Men and Avengers, both Marvel and Fox could use them. With Disney's acquisition of 20th Century Fox, Marvel Studios owns the movie rights to more Marvel comics characters than everincluding the X-Men. Though Venom was critically panned and ithas inspired a lot of hilarious memes, the movie was a massive box office success, as it made of $850 million worldwide. In legal speak, Fox owns a piece of the X-Men film franchise; they have the "rights" to produce any character that frequently appears in the X-Men Universe, projects like X-Men: First Class and X-Men Origins: Magneto insure Fox will be milking that property for everything it's possibly worth. Marvel. He is a Feature, Comic Breakouts and News writer. And Scarlet Witch + Quicksilver are not mutants anymore but they've been associated with the X-Men enough to be used (but also associated enough with Avengers to be used there too) Giant_Enemy_Crab1 7 yr. ago. Cooper also updates elements of her suit and jacket, adding detail to the former and turning the latter into a hoodie. The X-Men have been there to stop him at every turn, but he has also clashed with the Avengers. Con: Marvel Studios already has a lot on its plate. Marvel Studios managed to build a thriving cinematic universe without some of its most valuable assets, as Sony owns Spider-Man, Universal controls Hulk's solo movies, and Fox used to own . Even if you're not a fan of this costume design, you have to admit that Stuart Cooper nailed the casting on this one, Alexandra Daddario would make a great Rogue, especially with her piercing eyes. Doom is an incredibly popular villain, and he has clashed with most of the Marvel heroes at one time or another, sometimes as a god! In a comic book storyline in the 2000s, Storm actually marries Black Panther, years after she saved him when she was 12 years old. Jeremy Renner's Sister Gives Health Update, Here's an Infographic of Who Owns What Marvel Characters Now, MCU 2023 Preview: Movies, Shows Coming to Phase 5 | Phase Zero, Major Ghost Rider Character Returns to Marvel at Best Possible Time, Daredevil: Born Again Adds The Book of Mormon Star, See All the New Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania Posters, Avengers: Secret Wars Fan Art Shows Spider-Man and Wolverine Facing Off With Kang the Conqueror, Moon Knight Fans Celebrate First Anniversary of Trailer Release, Thunderbolts Star Julia Louis-Dreyfus Reveals Her Biggest Request for Her Character, China Reveals Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Release Date. A Daredevil reboot (with Jason Statham expressing interest in becoming "The Man Without Fear") was in the pipeline some time ago but recently the project's been quiet. Rights for Spider-Man (Tom Holland) and villains Vulture (Michael Keaton) and Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) are controlled by Sony, who allows the characters to exist and operate within the MCU through a multi-picture deal struck in 2015, giving Marvel Studios creative power on the Sony-distributed Spider-Man franchise and the ability to utilize Spider-Man in its two-part Avengers sequels. 1. This was great for Marvel as they didnt have any financial involvement or worry about the development or the production of the movie, butthey would still get acut of the movies profit and reap in the rewards regardless. Comics fans have focused on the deal allowing Disney to bring a few leftover Marvel characters and Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope (including the 20th Century Fox fanfare) into the fold.But . The hard-looking mask is also a great choice, as is thebullet-proof-vestlook for the torso, which helps make elements of the comics workfor this potential MCU costume. But in the movies, the Fantastic Four and the Avengers have never interacted due to these rights issues. There's a lot of cool ideas on this costume(even if the casting is weird), especially the gloves and the way the stripes are incorporated into the armor. Probably any "Marvel Event" is out of the question.] However, Sony is allowing the character to appear in Marvel movies. Marvel was legally prohibited from initiating development on any Fox-controlled properties until the deal officially closed Wednesday, March 20. Jackman retired from the role, and now that Wolverine's rights are back at Marvel, the actor has confirmed that he will not be returning. This version of the character wasn't stated to be an MCU design, but the changes added to the character's usual comics look could easily work in a potential Marvel Studios Fantastic Four film. Many are under the impression that Sony sold the character to Marvel, which is not the case. By Cameron Bonomolo Last year also saw the successful launch of the Disney+ streaming service. The design is not MCU-specific, but if Wolverine's next film appearance is gonna be in a Marvel Studios film, this could work as his costume. The debt facility will fund initial development, including scripts for each production, and they maintain sole "green light" control. The possibility of Marvel having complete control of their character properties, like its comic rival DC, is a matter of time. Not meeting a deadline for filming the property is the easiest way - most of the contracts have a clause that allows the rights to revert back to Marvel if principle photography doesn't begin by a certain date after the initial release or if they make an upfront payment as if they were going to start principal photography. The go-to source for comic book and superhero movie fans. This design depicts Wolverine as played by Luke Evans, a concept based on Hugh Jackman naming the actor as a great replacement for himself as the clawed superhero. Venom is where it gets confusing for the movie universes, as it reportedly shares the same universe as the current Spider-Man movies, but not with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, with the Disney/Fox deal, further plans may have to be put on hold like thatX-Force film, for example. However, not only do people think its a sequel to Hulk from 2003, but they also dont realise that its officially a part of the MCU, as its Edward Norton who plays the titular character instead ofMark Ruffalo, who has played him in every movie since The Avengers in 2012. The bulk of the characters are over at Disney, while Sony controls the world of Spider-Man and Fox very tightly holds onto X-Men and . Marvel Cinematic Universe All Characters Power Scaling. You can follow him on Twitter at @ian_c1701 (yes, that is a Star Trek reference) for discussions, debates or pictures of really cool collectibles he probably doesn't have room for. This, in part, is the reason we see studios releasing films in rapid succession. With Disney's acquisition of Fox's film rights on the verge of being finalized, it's only a matter of time before we see the likes of the X-Men and the Fantastic Four in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Binge-worthy entertainment news and celebrity interviews. But it remains to be seen whether Marvel Studios would want to bring Wolverine back on screen so soon afterLoganor if theyd want to give him a rest before coming up with a new version. Yes, they sure did. "The truth is, I'm excited for all of them. Though the new independent studio is now producing their own films, solely distributed by Paramount Pictures, there are a number of iconic characters still residing at Hollywood's other major studios. Now that the characters' rights are back at Marvel, Mr. Though Marvel is free to use Hulk elsewhere he's a main player in the Avengers franchise and acted as support in 2017's Thor: Ragnarok Universal retains the right to distribute a solo Hulk picture, prohibiting a follow-up solo film. There are a lot ofweird facts about their relationship, but Marvel decided to keep them as siblings, as opposed to Quicksilver riding solo in the X-Men series. ORIGINAL ARTICLE: With X-Men Origins: Wolverine a little under three weeks from release, we here at Screen Rant thought an overview of all Marvel properties (and possibilities) might be in order. The way that Cooper translated Gambit's shirt into an MCU-styled armored-cloth-looking-material is absolutely flawless, and grounds the design enough to allow the other, less realistic elements to remain mostly intact. For fans of the superheroes, this is great news, considering that Marvel makes good movies and Fox's . Not just a villain of the X-Men, but of the Avengers as well. Magneto's power is great, and his plans are far-reaching. But the Shi'ar's presence in the Marvel Universe goes well beyond being tied to the X-Men. The Walt Disney Company's $70+ billion acquisition of News Corp.'s 21st Century Fox film assets will be completed tomorrow. Fantastic and The Invisible Woman, a casting choice that fans have been asking for and which is brought to life by this design. Now that the Disney and Fox deal is official, CBR lists the 15 characters previously owned by Fox who have finally come home at Marvel. Marvel Studios had plans for the Silver Surfer, as back in 2012 they offered Fox an extension of their film rights to Daredevil in exchange for the Silver Surfer and Galactus, but Fox chose to . Or maybe viewers have seen more than one interpretation of the same character in different movies, or that theyve heard the same characters or alien race mentioned that have appeared in a completely different series. Co-productions between the indie studio and majors began in 1998; now Blade, Ghost Rider, Man-Thing, Punisher and Spider-Man are subsequently licensed elsewhere. As for the design, Cooper keeps things simple, adding some realistic textures to one of Rogue's more iconic suits, her yellow-spandex-jacket combo designed by Jim Lee. With MCU mutants yet to make their official introduction, it would seem as if non-mutant characters often associated with the X-Men could have been introduced already yet this still hasn't happened yet. Disney, which already owns the Pixar, Marvel and the Star Wars brands, will now also get Deadpool and the Fox-owned Marvel characters such as the X-Men and Fantastic Four, allowing for the full . Copyright 2023 ComicBook.com. However, it will be a while before anything is officially announced on the deal's status, and even longer until and MCU X-Men or Fantastic Four movies are teased. Still, Sony plans to continue making their own films featuring Spider-Man characters, with a Venom movie coming in 2018.