Marvel Studios Animation

Logo used since 2024
Trade name	Marvel Animation
Company type	Division
Industry	Entertainment Animation
Genre	Superhero fiction
Founded	July 21, 2021; 4 years ago (2021-07-21)
Headquarters	Burbank, California , United States
Key people	Brad Winderbaum (head of streaming, television, and animation) Dana Vasquez-Eberhardt (VP of animation)
Products	Animation
Services	Production Licensing
Parent	Marvel Studios

Marvel Studios Animation (also known asMarvel Animation) is a division of American production companyMarvel Studios centered on development of its animated projects based onMarvel Comics. The division was created by Marvel Studios as a "mini studio" and mainly produces projects set within theMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), and also oversees the development of non-MCU animated projects.

Since 2021, Marvel Studios Animation has released the seriesWhat If...?,X-Men '97,Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man,Eyes of Wakanda,Marvel Zombies and the shortsI Am Groot. Additionally, they took over production of theDisney Jr. seriesSpidey and His Amazing Friends starting with its second season, and have continued to oversee its related series, such asIron Man and His Awesome Friends and the upcomingAvengers: Mightiest Friends, along with two upcoming specials. The division outsources animation to other studios for each project.

In March 2019, it was revealed thatMarvel Studios was developing an animated anthology series based on theWhat If comic book concept to explore how theMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) would be altered if certain events had occurred differently.^[1]Disney and Marvel officially announcedWhat If...? the following month.^[2] The series of animated short filmsI Am Groot was announced in December 2020.^[3][4]

In June 2021, Marvel Studios executive vice president of film productionVictoria Alonso said the studio's expansion to animation with the seriesWhat If...? was an opportunity to make the MCU more diverse.^[5] At that time, Marvel Studios was creating an "animation branch and mini studio",^[6][7] to focus on more animated content beyondWhat If...?, building infrastructure to handle multiple animated series at once and looking to hire around 300 new staff for production roles on a slate ofDisney+ animated series.^[6][8][9] Marvel Studios'Brad Winderbaum, the executive who was in charge ofWhat If...?, was promoted to head of streaming, television, and animation at Marvel Studios,^[10] and in September, Alonso was promoted to president of physical and post-production, VFX and animation.^[11]Dana Vasquez-Eberhardt also serves as the vice president of animation.^[12] During theDisney+ Day event in November 2021, Marvel Studios officially announced an animatedSpider-Man prequel series titledSpider-Man: Freshman Year, theWhat If...?-relatedMarvel Zombies,^[13] andX-Men '97, a revival and continuation ofX-Men: The Animated Series.^[14]What If...? directorBryan Andrews said each additional animated series would exist "on its own term[s] and hopefully explore unexpected facets of the MCU",^[15] with Winderbaum saying the studio would only tell stories that they felt needed to be told in animated form.^[8]

By April 2022, the division was announced to be taking over production for theDisney Jr. preschool seriesSpidey and His Amazing Friends starting with its second season;^[16] the series' first season was released underMarvel Entertainment.^[17] During Marvel Studios' animation panel at the July 2022San Diego Comic-Con, the projects discussed were introduced as being part of the "Marvel Animated Multiverse".^[18][19] Shortly after, Winderbaum saidthe Multiverse Saga of the MCU and its exploration of themultiverse allowed the studio to "look at alternate paths and other takes on the characters... see[ing] them expanding and growing in unforeseen, unexpected ways", which he stated was the "guiding light" for the animated projects.^[20] By September,Brian Kesinger was attached to direct an animated series for Marvel Studios,^[21] though it was canceled shortly after.^[22]

By January 2023, the division was being referred to as "Marvel Studios Animation".^[7] In March 2023, Alonso was fired from her role at Marvel Studios by a group includingDisney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman and Disney's human resources and legal departments for serving as a producer on theAmazon Studios filmArgentina, 1985 (2022); this was a breach of a 2018 agreement between Alonso and Disney which stated employees would not work for a competing studio.^[23][24] Alonso reportedly did not seek permission to work on the film, and was asked by Disney to stop working on the film, as well as not to promote or publicize it, with the situation "deemed serious enough" that Disney requested a new agreement be signed. Despite this, Alonso continued to promote the film following its September 2022 premiere, and was consistently reminded of her agreement and breach of contract, ultimately leading to her firing.^[23] Alonso's lawyers refuted this claim, stating Disney was aware of, and agreed to, Alonso's work onArgentina, 1985, and that she was instead "silenced[... and] was terminated when she refused to do something she believed was reprehensible";^[25] this incident was reported to be a disagreement with a Disney executive over the censoring ofgay pride elements inAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) to release the film in Kuwait and comply withits restrictive anti-LGBTQ laws.^[26][27] A Disney spokesperson reiterated the notion that she was fired due to "an indisputable breach of contract and a direct violation of company policy" among other "key factors".^[25]

In December 2023, Marvel Animation announcedEyes of Wakanda, withBlack Panther (2018) andBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) directorRyan Coogler involved through his production companyProximity Media.^[28][29]Freshman Year was also retitledYour Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.^[28] The division's formal name of Marvel Animation was further confirmed in February 2024 with the release of the first trailer forX-Men '97.^{[30][31][32][33]} A logo for the division was also revealed.^[33] The "Marvel Animation" name and banner was used for the division's projects moving forward, existing alongside Marvel Studios' "Marvel Television" banner for its live-action Disney+ series. This was done to help indicate to audiences that they did not have to watch all of the studio's projects to understand the overall story and could choose which storylines and characters under these banners to follow.^[34] The Marvel Animation and Television banners still exist under Marvel Studios, which Feige noted was not the case with the previous incarnations of each.^[35] In July 2024, it was reported that the studio had spent nearly $20 million on an upcoming project between June 2022 and June 2023, which was believed to beEyes of Wakanda.^[36]

Similar to other animation studios, Marvel Studios Animation outsources its animation to other studios;^[37] Alonso said the medium of animation allowed Marvel Studios to work with new companies around the world.^[5] Winderbaum stated that Marvel Studios was open to working with corporate siblingsPixar andWalt Disney Animation Studios on animated MCU content "under the right circumstances".^[37] The preschool projects are co-produced with Disney Jr. in association with animation studioAtomic Cartoons,^[38][39][40] andEyes of Wakanda is produced with Proximity Media.^[29]

According to Marvel Studios' head of visual developmentRyan Meinerding, Marvel Studios Animation uses techniques similar to those used in comics, which allows the studio to adapt Marvel comics "in a way that's maybe more powerful than the films".^[19] Winderbaum noted Marvel Studios had to alter its production process for its animated projects, noting "it requires so much more forethought" than live-action production, where Marvel Studios usually makes most changes to its projects during post-production.^[10] He also said that the type of animation used in a series would depend on what the producers felt fit for each series.^[41] Unlike VFX artists for the live-action productions, artists at the animation studio are hired directly by Marvel and work in-house at Marvel Studios Animation. The studio works under a strict deadline structure, which was criticized by a senior animator as the studio "asking for things that can't be done".^[7]

• Marvel Animation, a separate animation studio that centers on Marvel properties
• Marvel Productions, a defunct animation studio that also centered on Marvel properties

• 2021 establishments in California
• American animation studios
• American companies established in 2021
• Companies based in Burbank, California
• Disney production studios
• Marvel Comics animation
• Marvel Studios
• Mass media companies established in 2021

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