Stan Lee is often considered the godfather of the MCU considering all the work he did the decades before it existed to get some of Marvel's greatest heroes inserted into the American consciousness. Now it appears that he'll be able to return to the MCU in Marvel Studios movies, television shows and other entities.
Lee was the writer and editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics in the 1960s, when he, along with other Marvel greats Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, helped create the heroes who are so often seen on streaming services, television, and movies these days. The trio is often credited with ushering in the golden age of Marvel Comics as well thanks to making heroes and storylines that are still well known decades later. Lee was also seen as a kind of smiling ambassador of the company. It became a tradition to have him pop up in every Marvel movie as some random character right up until his death in 2018.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, a new deal between Marvel and a collective known as the Stan Lee Universe will allow Marvel to continue using Lee's likeness for at least the next 20 years. The Stan Lee Universe is a joint venture between Genius Brands International and POW! Entertainment. The deal will allow Marvel to continue putting Stan Lee in video games, movies, television shows, and even theme parks for the next couple of decades.
"It 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,” said Genius Brands chairman and CEO Andy Heyward. “It’s a broad deal." However, Marvel has cautioned that while the deal allows for the company to use the voice, likeness, and signature of Stan Lee in several ways, this may not mean he'll be returning to movies in the way people used to see him. There is, of course, some question about whether people would even want to see a digitized version of someone who passed away four years ago.
It seems more likely that theme parks and merchandise will be the main aim of using the Marvel Comics legend. How exactly the company plans on using the license isn't entirely known, though it's been made clear that at the very least the 20-year commitment will give the firm the freedom to use that likeness without concern over pushback.
Marvel Studios still hasn't shed much light on what exactly its plans for Lee in the MCU might be following the announcement. It's possible the real fallout of this particular agreement won't be seen for another few years, though it's also possible Marvel has been planning for this kind of agreement for a while now and is poised to take advantage immediately.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter