Hawkeye Comic Writer Matt Fraction Was Involved 'Throughout The Process' Of The Disney+ Show
The Marvel Cinematic Universe owes an immense debt of gratitude towards the original comic book writers and artists responsible for the work that Kevin Feige and his creative team have adapted. They were the ones, of course, who first introduced so many of the concepts and characters that have since gone on to enjoy incredible success worldwide on the big screen. Unfortunately, this hasn't always resulted in those creatives being fairly compensated for their invaluable contributions to these movies. The Guardian reported earlier this year that Marvel Studios has been in the habit of compensating creators with a paltry total of "...an invitation to the [respective movie] premiere and a check for $5,000." In July of 2021, comic book writer Ed Brubaker admitted he received more money from the studio for his brief cameo in "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" than he ever received as the comics creator of the Winter Soldier in the first place.
That brings us to the upcoming Disney+ series "Hawkeye," which you may have noticed is borrowing heavily from the look, tone, and marketing of Matt Fraction and David Aja's acclaimed comic book run. Though there have been misgivings among some that this might very well be another case of influential comic book writers being left high and dry, Fraction himself has clarified that he at least expects to receive a proper credit on the series for his consultation work.
Credit Where Credit's Due
Though Marvel Studios regularly puts its own twist on well-established storylines and characters from the source material, there's certainly a reason why the MCU is commonly lauded among fans for remaining faithful (in spirit, if not always beat-by-beat) to the comics. With "Hawkeye" set to debut in a few short weeks, the question of how fairly the studio treats its original comic book talent has been bound to come up sooner or later. Thankfully, The Ringer reached out directly to Matt Fraction on their podcast (via Murphy's Multiverse) and the man himself confirmed that he is involved with "Hawkeye" as what he believes to be a consulting producer.
"I am — I think — credited as consulting producer, though I'd have to check with my agent and probably just read the credits. But it's the best because I get to take all the credit...and hope none of the blame. I read scripts and offered thoughts. And that was, in sort of throughout the process, and sort of read through...three or four rounds of reading everything."
That certainly sounds about as involved as any Marvel comics artist has been with a Marvel production in quite some time, though he also confirms that his scheduled cameo in the series had to be nixed as a result of pandemic filming conditions. Hopefully, his producing credit will result in fair and proper compensation as one of the leading figures responsible for what the "Hawkeye" series has ultimately become.
"Hawkeye" will premiere on Disney+ on November 24, 2021.