Latest in Iron Man

As Avatar director James Cameron and Fox can tell you, copyright infringement lawsuits can fly fast and furious around blockbusters. How far they get in the courts is often a mixed result of the statute of limitations; proximity; if the asserted similarities are unique, benign or generic; and financial resources for…

EXCLUSIVE: When I pull up to the home that Robert Downey Jr and his wife and producing partner Susan share in Malibu, there are the trappings you would expect from the house owned by Hollywood’s best paid actor. The small fleet of cars, all tarped; the expanse of Pacific Ocean viewable from most anywhere on the…

Hong Kong Disneyland's ticket counter hasn't exactly been the happiest place on Earth since the park opened in 2005. But Disney is reaching into its $4B bag of Marvel tricks in an effort to juice attendance: An Iron Man-themed thrill ride, shopping area and photo pavilion will open at HK Dis –which turned it meager…

Turns out the Walt Disney Company really does own the rights to the Marvel characters created by Stan Lee, at least according to a federal judge today. U.S. District Judge William J. Martinez Thursday granted with prejudice Disney's motion to dismiss Stan Lee Media's multibillion-dollar lawsuit superhero copyright…

The same day Robert Downey Jr likely broke the bank reupping to play the superhero in two more Avengers flicks, a dude wearing an Iron Man mask robbed a bank in Florida. Flagler County Sheriffs say the 5-foot-4 bandit showed a gun in a Palm Coast Wells Fargo branch and demanded cash Thursday afternoon. Our anti-hero…

EXCLUSIVE: CAA has signed screenwriters Art Marcum & Matt Holloway, the scribes behind Iron Man and the upcoming remake of Highlander that has Juan Carlos Fresnadillo directing at Summit Entertainment. The writers had been repped for years by ICM, and that agency certainly helped get them on the A-list. Among their…

It was expected that intellectual property lawyer Marc Toberoff, who is suing Disney/Marvel on behalf of the heirs of legendary comics artist Jack Kirby, would appeal the decision by a federal judge in U.S. District Court for the Southern District Of New York that went against him. The judge not only granted the…

EXCLUSIVE: Intellectual property lawyer Marc Toberoff has a winning track record when he goes after Hollywood studios on behalf of rightsholders. But not today. I’ve just learned that he lost big in Federal Court for the Southern District Of New York after suing  Disney/Marvel for the Jack Kirby Estate. The federal…

It may be indelicate to make this argument just as thousands of fantasy fans are converging on San Diego for the annual Comic-Con. But the movie business may soon find itself mourning “the death of superheroes,” Susquehanna Financial Group’s Vasily Karasyov says in an intriguing report this morning. The analyst says…

Los Angeles, CA, July 26, 2010 – G4 will be the exclusive U.S. television home of four brand-new anime series featuring some of the most successful and iconic brands from the Marvel Universe.  Produced by Madhouse for Marvel Entertainment and Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan (SPEJ), these four original series – “Iron…

Luke Y Thompson is covering the Con for Deadline: 2ND UPDATE: Marvel tonight put together the most high-profile panel of any Hollywood studio at this year’s Comic-Con. From left to right, “Iron Man” Robert Downey Jr., “Agent Phil Coulson” Clark Gregg, “Black Widow” Scarlett Johansson, “Thor” Chris Hemsworth, “Captai…