Global Branding of Marvel' s Movies

In a global brand move, the post-credits to the originalIron Manmovie had SHIELD director Nick Fury visit Tony Stark's home. Fury told Stark that Iron Man is not "the only superhero in the world" and that he wanted to discuss the "Avenger's Initiative."

The AvengersandIron Manmovie franchises have made billions of dollars for Marvel Studios, a television and motion picture studio that is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company. They have also contributed heavily to making Robert Downey, Jr., one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood. Downey was born in 1965 in the United States. He made his movie debut at the age of five when he appeared in his father's movie titledPound. The "up-and-down-and-up" career of Downey is also a fascinating global brand story. He is riding high with three incredible multisequel franchisesIron Man,The Avengers, andSherlock Holmes. But the focus here is onThe AvengersandIron Man.

Iron Manpremiered April 30, 2008, in international markets and a few days later in the United States. Amazingly, the movie had been in development since 1990 at Universal Pictures, 20th Century Fox, and New Line Cinema. Marvel Studios reacquired the rights to the movie in 2006. The basic plot has playboy, philanthropist, and genius Tony Stark (played by Downey) as the "superhero." Iron Man is a fictional character that first appeared in the Marvel ComicsTales of Suspensein 1963. The character itself was created by Stan Lee.Iron Man 2was released in 2010, andIron Man 3was released in 2013, with plans for additional sequels after moreAvengersmovies.

The Avengerspremiered on April 11, 2012, at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood. The film was developed beginning in 2005, is based on the Marvel Comics superhero team with the same name, and was written and directed by Joss Whedon.The Avengersis a superhero team with familiar heroes such as Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye, and so on. No one really playsthesuperhero, although Scarlett Johansson's role as Black Widow was important to the movie franchise; it set the release date back from 2011 to 2012 to accommodate her inclusion. The second installment of theAvengersfranchise came out on May 1, 2015, in the United States (The Avengers: Age of Ultron).

While the movie character Iron Man is heavily connected to Downey, he also plays an integral part of Tony Stark inThe Avengers. In doing so, the actor has been part of Marvel Studios productions that have brought in more than $1.5 billion (The Avengers) and $1.2 billion (Iron Man 3).Iron Man 1andIron Man 2, respectively, made more than $600 million each as well. In total, Downey has starred in six films that have made more than $500 million each at the box office worldwide.

Clearly, the connection between Tony Stark as Iron Man in theIron Manfranchise and in theAvengersfranchise is perhaps not needed for the movie plot inThe Avengersor its sequel. Marvel Comics has drawn from more than 100 characters for its Avengers superheroes since 1963, but Iron Man was one of the original ones (along with Ant-Man, the Wasp, Thor, and the Hulk). The global branding success of Tony Stark as played by Downey across these two brands is also very advantageous for Marvel Studios' global branding.

Marvel Studios was originally known as Marvel Films from 1963 to 1996. Given that Marvel Studios is part of the Walt Disney empire, it operates jointly with Walt Disney Studios on distribution and marketing of Iron Man and Avengers movies. Other high-profile projects of Marvel Studios have included the X-Men, Spider-Man, and Captain America franchises, with more to come. Anything embedded in the global branding of the Walt Disney Company has tremendous potential, reach, and longevity.

Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American business mogul as well as animator, cartoonist, director, philanthropist, producer, screenwriter, and voice actor who lived from 1901 to 1966. An international icon, he started Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio with his brother, Roy O. Disney, in 1923. The current name of the Walt Disney Company has been around since 1986. Disney has one of the largest and most well-known studios in the world. It also operates numerous related businesses, such as the ABC broadcast TV network, cable TV networks (e.g., Disney Channel, ESPN), publishing, merchandising, theater divisions, theme parks (e.g., Disney World, Disneyland), and much more. Mickey Mouse is the primary symbol of the Walt Disney Company and one of the most globally recognized brands ever!

QUESTION 1: Comment on Marvel Studios' success at global branding. In your opinion, is its success related to the superhero theme of its movies, or could it have had the same level of success with other story lines?

QUESTION 2: Reflect on the role of Marvel Studios parent company, the Walt Disney Company, as a factor in the success of Marvel Studios. Do you think Marvel Studios would have had the same level of success without Disney?

Pls also create1 multiple choice question with four answer choices. Thank you!