Just when you thought all of the drama behind the scenes of Deadpool & Wolverine was limited to Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively, there’s more where that came from. Rob Liefeld, the legendary comic artist who co-created Deadpool along with Fabien Nicieza, says he’ll no longer work with Marvel after some behind-the-scenes slights both during production and along with the release of the R-rated hit. The news comes a year after Liefeld publicly announced on social media that he was retiring from Deadpool.
Liefeld detailed his grievances in a new episode of his Robservations podcast, as well as an interview with the Hollywood Reporter. The final straw, according to the comics creator, was apparently multiple occurrences at the New York premiere of Deadpool & Wolverine, which included Liefeld and his family not being given access to the afterparty, him believing Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige ignored him, and select images of Liefeld with other Marvel creatives taken at the event not appearing on Getty Images. “It was meant to embarrass, diminish, defeat me,” Liefeld said on his podcast. “At some point, you go, ‘I’ve received the message, and the message is clear.” A person with insider knowledge of the situation told io9 Marvel was confused about these claims, and Liefeld’s timing speaking out months later.
Marvel Studios has famously had, let’s say, questionable relationships with comic book creators. Thanos creator Jim Starlin similarly left Marvel over the treatment he faced getting compensation and creative credit for his work on some of the publisher’s biggest characters; Black Panther writer Ta-Nehisi Coates has talked about it; America Chavez creators Joe Casey and Nick Dragotta have expressed their disappointment; and on and on and on. All of which does add some merit to Liefeld’s claims. And yet, Liefeld is immortalized in Deadpool & Wolverine‘s most iconic scene as the characters walk by the store “Liefeld’s Just Feet,” an inside joke about how many fans believe he doesn’t draw feet. He also hosted fan screenings and was invited to visit the set during filming, though he says he felt “unwelcome” there.
Liefeld also says his treatment surrounding Deadpool changed when the character moved from Fox to Disney. “They had me along for the ride, and I caused zero drama. I was happy to be there,” he said of Fox, which also allowed him to cameo in the first film.
Things have changed over the years in regards to all of this, though. Many of the creator issues stem from before 2023 when Kevin Feige was in charge of all of Marvel and, in recent years, there has been a push towards more synergy between the film and comic side. One noteworthy example was last year’s Comic-Con panel where Feige appeared alongside Marvel Comics EIC C.B. Cebulski.
Hopefully, these recent developments mean that moving forward things are going in a different direction, but it may be too late in this case. io9 reached out to Liefeld for comment, but the writer/artist preferred not to further discuss the situation. But, for now, it seems that Deadpool’s biggest champion is leaving the character behind him, and the entire Marvel universe with it.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.