User blog:ARTaylor/Rumor: Jeph Loeb Leaving Marvel

According to Variety, Kevin Feige's promotion to Marvel Entertainment's chief creative officer will result in a significant shake-up within the company. Feige, previously just in charge of Marvel Studios, will now have total executive creative power over the comics, films, series, and games. According to sources, Jeph Loeb is now expected to leave his position as the head of Marvel Television and is searching for a new deal with a different company.

Loeb is a veteran producer who worked on series like Smallville, Lost, and Heroes. He took over Marvel's television division in 2010. Under his leadership, the division has produced works for broadcast like Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Runaways, and Cloak and Dagger as well as Netflix's series like Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Punisher. However, it seems like his role has been questioned with the announcement that Marvel Studios is moving into episodic storytelling with Loki, Hawkeye, WandaVision, and What If...?. Marvel Television's series have advertised that they are part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe but have never had any real impact on any film, whereas Marvel Studios' upcoming shows will presumably be more integrated.

Marvel Television has become focused on animation recently. The relative failures of Inhumans and Iron Fist, as well as the cancellation of the proposed Ghost Rider series, are said to have embarrassed those in the division. Loeb previously reported Marvel president Dan Buckley who then reported to chief executive officer Ike Perlmutter, whom insiders claim has has a nasty rivalry with Feige. Feige's promotion over Perlmutter shocked some as the latter is the largest stockholder of Marvel's parent company The Walt Disney Company. Buckley will now have to answer to both Feige and Perlmutter. In addition, family entertainment chief Cort Lane will now answer to Feige rather than Buckley.

Loeb's tenure at Marvel has received mixed responses, to say the least. It was during his time that more serious shows like Wolverine and the X-Men and The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes were ended to make way for more youth-focused fare like Ultimate Spider-Man and Avengers Assemble. Marvel has greatly expanded the number of shows and shorts produced, but the focus on younger audiences often at the expense of older ones has been criticized by many.