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In 2021, 20th Century Fox's The New Mutants credited one "Bob Macleod" as the co-creator of the team. The problem is is that "Bob Macleod, co-creator of the New Mutants" doesn't exist - Bob McLeod, co-creator of the New Mutants does, however. It was far from the only problem in that film (if the mutant X-Gene was real, mine would have been activated the moment I found out Sunspot was whitewashed), but that's a story for another time. And while The New Mutants film has since rectified the spelling of McLeod's name in its credits, this is the tip of the iceberg for how comic book creators have been mistreated by Hollywood. 

As comic book adaptations have brought Hollywood immense profits, comic book creators have been left behind. Speaking to Mark Millar on his Millar Time podcast, Deadpool co-creator Rob Liefeld expressed his frustration with how Hollywood, specifically Marvel Studios, has profited from the work of comic book creators without giving them proper recognition. Liefeld said, "They don't value comic book creators. We're a nuisance to them, Mark." 

Liefeld continued, "Imagine, the guy that made this character [Deadpool]. [Deadpool] comes out of my head, nobody else's head... If I don't wake up and imagine him, name him, create him, generate him, ask for all the clearances, 'Can he be tied with Weapon X with Wolverine?' - he doesn't exist. Imagine not speaking to this guy [Liefeld]. Imagine ignoring him. It was appalling. But I laughed it through... I'm about to go sit in the theater to watch a hundred of these guys - The Deadpool Corps - who debuted Deadpool Corps? That was me, I'm that guy too, you don't get the Lady Deadpool and all of those. So I'm about to go watch all of them come to life again, kick ass, I know the movie is going to be tremendously successful, but to be, literally, ghosted all because I said, 'Can't we get better credits than the credits we're getting, these buried behind the sound technicians [credits]?"

To be clear, Lady Deadpool was technically co-created by Liefeld and Victor Gischler. But that doesn't change the fact that Marvel Studios and Hollywood more broadly have fallen short of giving comic book creators their due. Let's not forget that Jim Starlin was paid more for his cameo appearance in Avengers: Endgame where he had one line of dialogue than he was for being the co-creator of Thanos - you know, the villain in two different Avengers movies. 

Get ready for what's next with our guide to upcoming comics, how to buy comics at a comic shop, and our guide to Free Comic Book Day 2025.