It did not take long for Marvel Entertainment (NYSE: MVL) to announce the intended 2010 release of Iron Man 2. This came one day after Marvel reported its latest earnings and the spectacularly successful weekend debut of its newest hit movie.
Having seen Iron Man with the cast and crew -- a prejudiced crowd if there ever was one -- I can tell you it is worth catching Iron Man on the big screen.
Meanwhile, if you are a Marvel comics fan, as I was growing up, and can't wait for the sequel, let's hope that the June 13 premiere of the The Incredible Hulk tides you over until 2010. And then, starting with Iron Man 2, you can look forward to the gates opening wide for the pantheon of Marvel Super Heroes.
In addition to the movies, product licensing should be strong for years as superheroes tend to make for great toys and other fare.
Today, Marvel is up $0.51 to $33.61.
Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. Disclosure: I hold no position in MVL -- but I added it to my watch list.
Closing Bell: When We All Love the PIIGS (NBG, SQNM, PG, ERTS, KO)
Serious Money: Cheapest Stocks List Shrinks from 26 to 21
Chasing Value: Hasbro Earnings Makes My Point
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-07-2008 @ 5:58AM
Dan Barnett said...
Sheldon,
I think you miss the main point of the success of the Iron Man movie. (Though had I had the opportunity to see the movie with the cast & crew...) This is the first successful movie from what we might call the 2nd tier characters. X-Men were successful. Spiderman movies were successful. Fantastic Four had a successful movie & one flop. But Daredevil, Hulk, Electra all flopped. The public ddi not seem overly interested in the 2nd tier characters.
You may contend that the writing/acting were the difference in the success of the films & you have access to better information on that than I. On the other hand, if Iron Man shows that 2nd tier characters can be successful, then there is a much deeper well to draw from.
And yes, DC has the same problem. Batman & Superman are successful, Catwoman flopped, Flash had a short-lived TV show. Wonder Woman's TV show was years ago. & I don't remember any DC movies. Which itself makes my point.
5-07-2008 @ 7:10AM
Sheldon L said...
Dan,
You make some good points but I beg to differ, The Hulk is not second tier character and it flopped because they changed the story line. The script killed the box office (the whole dad thing) and the same is true for FF2. The first stayed true the second did not...that is the lesson. If you have a popular character, don't change it. Remember...if it ain't broke don't fix it. Anyone in Hollywood will tell you it all goes with the script.