Deadline and everyone (because that is how the internet works these days) are reporting on the news that Marvel Superhero Superintendent Kevin Feige is now reporting directly to Walt Disney Studios Chairman Alan Horn. Previously, he was reporting to Ike Perlmutter, the COO and savior of Marvel Entertainment. Ike was the guy that saved Marvel from bankruptcy and secured the funding to kick off the version of Marvel Studios that we know and love today.
According to Deadline.com:
The reorganization, which took effect last week, only affects the film division; television and other Marvel endeavors remain under Perlmutter’s purview. Walt Disney Studios President Alan Bergman also will be heavily involved with the Marvel team. The new situation is echoes the one that Disney has with Lucasfilm.
There is a lot of speculation that Feige orchestrated this move in order to get out from under the heavy thumb of Perlmutter, who is said to be a bit (and by “a bit”, the rumors are that he is “a lot”) of a micromanager, as well as a little tight with the dollar, and the reason that Marvel has struggled locking in strong Tier 1 talent behind the camera. There is also speculation that he is eyeing taking over for the very awesome Kathleen Kennedy running the Star Wars Universe once his Marvel contract is up in 2019.
According to the indefatigable Devin Faraci at BirthMoviesDeath.com:
If you had asked me this question last year I would have told you he was going to leave Marvel, having created a cultural revolution that has changed the way everybody makes movies…. and being sick of dealing with Ike. Now? I’ve always heard whispers that Feige truly craves the Lucasfilm throne, and this move could help get him closer to being the guy chosen to take over Star Wars after Kathleen Kennedy steps down – which could be in a few years or in a decade or more. Nobody knows.
Marvel TV, which is run by full on Comic Book guy Jeph Loeb, is not impacted by this shake-up and will still report up to Perlmutter, which is only a big deal if you thought that Feige had any interest in what was going on there.
Now let’s be clear at this point, I don’t know Feige or anyone involved in this story, I don’t even know Faraci who I have followed and read since he was the only good thing at CHUD.com. What I do know though is that goals change, especially in the professional arena. If I were in Feige’s shoes, Star Wars would look good on my resume, but Walt Disney Studios would look even better. And the Walt Disney Company being run by a former studio head wouldn’t be completely unheard of, either.
I think Feige has a much bigger goal and Marvel and Star Wars are only small parts of that. And Disney would be crazy not to start dumping more responsibility on him. Not with his track record.