Marvel’s Alleged Strict Cameo Rules to Pay Creators Less Come to Light

Marvel Entertainment’s Marvel Cinematic Universe is the largest film franchise in the world and has spawned 29 movies and seven TV series since the first film came out in 2008.

Disney purchased Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion in 2009, making Marvel Studios the second-largest media company in the world after Apple.

But it seems like despite its success, MCU’s comic book writers and artists do not receive the respect they deserve.

Writer and cartoonist Ed Brubaker has previously voiced his frustration over the lack of bonuses or fees he received after his characters leapt from the pages to the screen.

Other creators, and their estates, have spoken out about Marvel and DC’s treatment of freelancers. However, a new report reveals some bizarre rules put in place to prevent these creators from getting the total compensation promised in their contracts.

It has been revealed that Marvel has strict rules surrounding what constitutes a cameo appearance, with the result that creators are not paid as much as they were initially promised. According to the cameo rules, a character’s appearance is considered a cameo if they make up less than 15% of the total screen time.

Captain America: Civil War’s Winter Soldier, for example, features Bucky for 22 minutes of the two-hour and 28 minutes-long film. Bucky is a major player in Civil War, but the Marvel rules classify him as a cameo, meaning Brubaker would be owed less money for his appearance, regardless of the importance of Bucky to the story.

Likewise, Captain America’s appearance in Avengers: Infinity War is considered a cameo since he appears for less than seven-and-a-half minutes during the two-and-a-half-hour film. In other words, no matter how essential to the film a character is, if they’re in the movie for less than 15% of the runtime, the creator gets paid less.

In addition, this rule ignores cut scenes, since a single deleted scene can make all the difference between a role being a cameo or a lead.

Bucky Barnes was essential to Civil War. However, since he appears for just under 15% of the runtime, the comic creators (who are contractually obligated to receive a fee if their character appears in a movie or TV property) are paid much less.

It isn’t as if Disney couldn’t afford to pay the writers and artists who created these iconic comic character more money, being one of the world’s most powerful and profitable corporations.

Whether Marvel changes its penny-pinching policies or holds the line on regulations as more of its policies become public remains to be seen.