Only a week into his position as Executive Vice President, Head of Television for Marvel Studios, Jeph Loeb took the time to catch up with
ComicBookResources and explain a bit more about the transition into his new job and what fans should expect from the company's television and direct-to-video platforms:
"It's been amazing. Everyone at Marvel and at Disney have been incredibly supportive," said Loeb after catching a flight from Los Angeles to New York for a meeting with Dan Buckley, Publisher & President of the Print, Animation & Digital Divisions of Marvel.
"We [Marvel and Disney] all want the same thing: to make the best shows with the best talent. Marvel Television will approach each project the way publishing does with the comics and Marvel Studios does with the movies: get the right people who understand and love the characters."
The Eisner Award winning writer, whose comic credits include major stories for many Marvel characters including Iron Man, Hulk, Daredevil, Spider-Man, the X-Men, seems to understand the ever-changing desire of what draws audiences to new television series. Many acclaimed, character-driven shows continue to grow in popularity even without the backing of major television networks. This wider range of accessible cable networks, which host massive hits such as
Battlestar Galactica,
Burn Notice and
Mad Men, appears to have been one of the deciding factors in the launch of Marvel's new division.
"Marvel waited for the right situation to present itself before getting into live series. With Disney the opportunity is perfect. Between ABC Studios and ABC Family combined with the networks ABC, ABC Family, Disney Channel, Disney XD, ESPN – who could ask for anything more? When we look at the best of 'genre' television, the stuff that sticks out for me is what's been driven by the vision of a super talented creator/show runner. Damon Lindelof on 'Lost.' Joss Whedon on 'Buffy.' Al Gough and Miles Millar on 'Smallville.' And as it happens, these guys are also big Marvel fans. What we will be looking for is that kind of energy for Marvel Television. People who understand and love both mediums."
Although Loeb couldn't get into detail about which Marvel characters are being considered for the small screen, mostly due to investigation into ownership of character rights, he did say the company is
watching the chatter all over the internet to get a feel for what fans want to see:
"Way too early to say [what shows will be greenlit.] But, we are curious as to who our fanbase would like to see on television. So far, there's been some terrific suggestions! This is the challenge of finding the right property. There are somethings that are best done on a big budget. Marvel has a vast library, and we're confident that there are characters and stories that lend themselves better to live television. 'Smallville' is a great example of how to do a Superman television show that doesn't rely on being a big budget movie."
Regarding Marvel's upcoming slate of TV animation and direct-to-video animated features, of which Loeb will also now oversee, the VP was 'quick to point out that those areas have already shaped up well under current creative management,' but that he definitely wants to see
"more,"
"We've got 'Super-Hero Squad' on Cartoon Network, 'Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes' on Disney XD for the fall 2010 and we've just started developing 'Ultimate Spider-Man.' We'd like to build off that base and make it possible to tell the most exciting stories with the best people...Our hope now is to expand on that to build up animation with the added responsibility of being part of the incredible Disney legacy in animation. It's too early to tell what our game plan will be in DVD. That said, I'm personally a huge fan of what's been done so far and would love to continue in that tradition."
The Avengers animated series should serve as a beneficial tie-in to Marvel Studio's live-action team film currently in development as well as the individual
Captain America and
THOR movies slated for theatrical release in the summer of 2011. On the other hand, a new Spider-Man cartoon based off of the Ultimate story line will have a lot to live up to; considering it is the immediate successor to the fan-favorite series
The Spectacular Spider-Man, which was recently pulled off the air.
Since Loeb offered a public revelation Marvel personnel are keeping a close eye on fan suggestions and commentary on internet sites and forums, now would be the best time for comic fans to dutifully voice their opinions of what properties and characters they'd want to see most on television over the next few years.
In case you've missed it, here's a video of Jeph Loeb that was released earlier this week to coincide with the official announcement of his new position at Marvel:
Information courtesy of Comic Book Resources; Images and Video courtesy of Marvel.com