Yes, it's true: Disney bought Marvel Comics for $4 billion.
Let's get the jokes out of our system right away: The House of Mouse buys the House of Ideas, Spider-Mouse and Duckdevil, Fantasia Four (Billion).
But what does it mean? Obviously, Disney isn't going to blab about its plans, but we do know some things and can guess some others. Here are the questions I hear the most:
Q: Will Disney sanitize Marvel Comics, or otherwise interfere with editorial content?
A: Unlikely. Remember, Disney also owns ABC, and they've never tried to clean up "Desperate Housewives." And while they famously interfered with Miramax when they bought it in 1993 (driving founders Bob and Harvey Weinstein to quit), they've also let Pixar run fairly independently since purchasing it in 2006.
Also, Disney didn't become the largest entertainment conglomerate in the world by being stupid. Marvel is very good at selling comic books, so they'll probably leave that golden goose alone, while they market the heck out of Marvel's 5,000-plus character library across various media and platforms.
So I think Wolverine will continue to curse a blue streak, The Punisher will still mow down gangsters in the adults-only MAX line and Peter Parker will still have friends with benefits.
Q: Will Disney honor the contracts Marvel has with third parties?
A: That's a nice way of asking about the Spider-Man movie franchise, which Disney rival Sony Pictures has rights to in perpetuity, assuming they continue to make movies about the character (and three are in the works right now). Disney says it will honor the contracts, and there's really no reason not to, providing they continue to make money.
However, I expect they'll snatch back any movie rights to characters where the contracts lapse or are invalidated, a group that includes not only Spider-Man, but Daredevil, Fantastic Four, Ghost Rider and X-Men, which are at Twentieth Century Fox.
There is also "Marvel Super Hero Island" at the Universal Studios Orlando theme park, and Odin only knows who's got what animation rights. Those are both areas in which Disney prides itself, and they will surely reel in those rights at the earliest opportunity.
For now, though, the contracts are still in place.
Q: Any changes in the upcoming slate of Marvel movies?
A: No. Disney CEO Bob Iger said in a conference call Aug. 31: "If it ain't broke ..."
And it makes sense, because Marvel (and therefore Disney) retains the movie rights to all the characters planned for upcoming Marvel movies, including "Iron Man 2" (2010), "Thor" (2011), "The First Avenger: Captain America" (2011) and "The Avengers" (2012). Paramount has contracts for distribution of these movies, but not character rights.
However, the tantalizing possibility lingers that Disney will boost these films with both money and expertise. If ever a company was perfect to create Thor's Asgard, it's Disney!
Q: Does this give Marvel Comics an unfair advantage in the marketplace?
A: Actually, it just puts them in the same league with archrival DC Comics, which is owned by Time Warner. But Time Warner has had difficulty translating DC properties outside of Batman and Superman into movies, and many big names like Flash, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman have lain fallow for many years. So this vertical integration business must be more difficult than it seems.
Still, it will be interesting to see DC's reaction. And it will be fun for us fans if these two 800-pound gorillas crank up the competition.
Q: Will Marvel publish Disney comics?
A: Coincidentally, Boom! Studios recently acquired the Disney license and is just now cranking up the books. They're launching "Mickey Mouse and Friends" and "Walt Disney's Comics and Stories" this month, and "Donald Duck and Friends" and "Uncle Scrooge" in October. (The previous licensee, Gemstone, is no longer publishing comics.)
It seems preposterous that another company will be doing Disney books when Disney owns the largest comics publisher in North America, but there it is. I imagine that this is another contract that will be allowed to lapse, so that Disney can take advantage of Marvel's creative expertise, printing savvy and distribution reach. But right now the ducks and mice are at Boom!
Q: Don't Disney and Marvel already have a history?
A: Yes. Disney famously threatened Marvel over Howard the Duck, which they said resembled Donald too much. Marvel knuckled under and put pants on Howard.
But don't worry, they're all friends now!
(Contact Andrew Smith of the Memphis Commercial Appeal at capncomics(at)aol.com or visit www.captaincomics.us.)
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