These past few weeks have seen some of the greatest directors of the century criticizing Marvel movies and superhero films as a whole for not being real cinema. And then there are those like James Gunn and Kevin Smith, who defend Marvel by saying that they are cinema. So as the two sides plead their cases, the director who helped launch the Marvel Cinematic Universe is sharing his thoughts.
Jon Favreau, who directed Iron Man and Iron Man 2, and appeared in Iron Man 3, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Avengers: Endgame, and Spider-Man: Far From Home, took some time off during The Mandalorian press circuit to talk about the comments made by Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola, and gave a rather composed response to their criticism of Marvel Studios films. More on what he said, below.
Everyone has an opinion on something, but some people’s opinions get more attention than others. Case in point, director Martin Scorsese‘s dislike of Marvel Studios’ films and of superhero films in general. The Oscar-winner went so far as to liken them to theme parks, even though he admittedly has never sat through a full Marvel movie, and claimed that they are “not cinema.
The backlash on social media to the Taxi Driver director’s comments has been great. However, another acclaimed director just proclaimed his disdain towards Marvel Studios’ films as well. Francis Ford Coppola, whose credits include Apocalypse Now, The Godfather, The Outsiders, and many more, defended Scorsese’s comments, saying that Marvel Studios films are “despicable.” More on the report below.
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, the man who brought us from Iron Man all the way to Avengers: Endgame, has received a major promotion.
New reports confirm that he will be moved up the ladder all the way to Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment. This means that he will oversee the company’s film, television, and publishing titles. That’s quite a lot of responsibility, especially when he’s got some other projects across the Disney office. More on the report below.
Of the many exciting new titles that will be arriving in the next few years from Marvel Studios, the one that I am looking forward to the most is Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. The film sees Simu Liu (Kim’s Convenience) as the title character who will fight the Ten Rings – the mysterious terrorist organization who kidnapped Tony Stark in the first Iron Man, had its name used in a sham in Iron Man 3, and partially revealed itself in the Iron Man one-shot “All Hail the King.”
While it is way too early to reveal too many details, director Destin Daniel Cretton is talking more about the film, what it represents, and hiring Bill Pope as the film’s cinematographer. More on all of this below.
Though it started to look like Spider-Man would be going back to Sony after their partnership with Disney came to a crashing end, a surprising deal was able to save the webslinger from the corporate snap that would have dusted the character from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Though both parties agreed on new terms, it was who brought them together that made it all happen. According to new reports, it was Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home star Tom Holland‘s last-minute heroics that were able to save Spidey from being lost to the MCU. More on the report below.
Students of the Unusual™ comic cover used with permission of 3BoysProductions
The Mercuri Bros.™ comic cover used with permission of Prodigal Son Press