By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Privacy Policy
Privacy Preference Center
Strictly Necessary Cookies
Strictly Necessary CookiesAlways Active
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems.
They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services,
such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms.
You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information.
Performance Cookies
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance
of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move
around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous.
If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be
able to monitor its performance.
Functional Cookies
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and
personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose
services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies
then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners.
They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you
relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information,
but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not
allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Everybody loves a Venn diagram. Or at least people who like easily readable depictions of things falling in to categories. How else would we know that—when talking about people who are breaking my heart and shaking my confidence daily— only Cecilia bridges the gap? But even more helpful have been the diagrams detailing the complicated rights issues surrounding Marvel Comics characters, their varying cinematic universes, and studios. Following Disney buying 20th Century Fox (which, yes, hasn’t been officially allowed yet), the rights issue became much clearer, but still not cut and dry in some areas, as this updated infographic shows. So, as you can see (as shared by Comic Book back in December), that big fat Marvel Studios bubble has gotten bigger and fatter, with all of the X-Men and Fantastic Four universe characters now/soon under the Marvel umbrella. Man-Thing, which at one time was an outlyer with Lionsgate, is now Marvel-owned, so I guess we can get that Man-Thing/Howard the Duck team-up we’ve always wanted.A couple of actually interesting things to note: first, Hulk is still co-owned by Marvel Studios and Universal, stemming from that first Hulk movie back in 2003. So all of the Hulk-universe characters we’ve seen in the MCU have been part-owned by Universal. She-Hulk is still Universal-only, which means a movie featuring her would be fairly unlikely, and this might also explain why we’ve been told repeatedly not to expect another solo Hulk movie; Universal might be like “nah, we’re good, you can use him but we don’t want to make anything.” Also, Namor the Sub-Mariner is his own thing, perhaps with a separate deal.Sony still has a pretty decent hold on characters in the Spider-Man sphere. While Marvel Studios has the rights to Spidey and his friends, it only currently has access to Vulture and Shocker (and also likely Scorpion) due to the deal for Spider-Man: Homecoming. Sony has all of Spidey’s villains, and Gwen Stacy. Although if reports are to be believed, Tom Holland’s Peter Parker may well show up in the upcoming Venom movie, so who knows?Does this help clear things up in the Marvel movie nightmare? Let us know in the comments below!