Marvel's tribute to Stan Lee kicked off on ABC tonight and a lot of people got to reflect on the life of a man who touched a lot of people's lives. But a lot of fans are upset with the fact that Lee's person account was used for promotional tweets after his passing. The idea of someone using his account at this point is very strange to be sure, but a lot of fans were downright outraged that this could even happen. Even if the same people that were running the account while Lee was alive are at the helm this time, it's a bit of a weird look. To add to the frustration, it looks like some sections of the country were unable to watch the special as well. Some scheduling conflicts led to stations across the country rolling with alternative programming and of course that angers people who might have had the release of this special circled on their calendars.
Earlier this year, Stan Lee's daughter filed a lawsuit to reclaim his intellectual property after he left Marvel in the 1990s. She faced some opposition from both POW! Entertainment and some other corners of the online world. The company provided Comicbook.com a statement after the lawsuit was filed.
"It is truly unfortunate that Stan Lee's name has to be involved in these continued frivolous actions which are truly nothing more than family drama.
J.C. Lee and others have unsuccessfully brought these very same arguments to court in multiple cases over the past 20 years, unfortunately, even leveling these arguments against her father when he was still alive. In those prior cases, the court system ruled in POWs favor, confirming without question POW! is the legal and proper owner of these rights. We are more than confident that this case will be promptly disposed of by the courts.
What is truly saddening for those at POW!, many of whom have been Stan's Closest confidants, friends, and business associates for so many years, is to see his estranged daughter using Stan's name in such a brazen and transparent effort to gain media attention and extract some financial settlement. The reality is that Stan Lee himself left specific instructions, including legal declarations, specifying that JC Lee is not to have any control, say, claim, right, or interest in or to the intellectual property that Stan left behind. Stan's own instructions dictate that JC Lee is not to have any involvement whatsoever in the commercial development of Stan's intellectual property. POW! is now, and always has been, Stan Lee's company and his legacy and will be forever, the way he wanted it to be.
All of the past legal actions are a matter of public record and plainly show that the present legal action is nothing more than a perverse publicity stunt."
Check out the reactions about Lee's tweet below: