With the forthcoming show Hawkeye soon to be hitting Disney Plus in the next few weeks, some are taking umbrage with Marvel Studio’s apparent lack of acknowledgment — or compensation — paid to the comics creators from which the series will no doubt take inspiration.
In fact, it’s clear from the promotional material of the series that the show will take heavy inspiration from the Hawkeye comics from 2012-2015 in particular, written by Matt Fraction and illustrated by David Aja, as TheDirect originally reported.
A side-by-side comparison between a promotional poster for the show and a comic book cover that clearly inspired it illustrates this point to a tee. Check out the comparison below:
In response to one Twitter user’s call for having comics illustrators credited for Marvel Studios properties, alongside the authors, illustrator Aja took the sentiment one step further and asked the movie studio to “start paying.”
There’s no doubt the two illustrations bear a lot of similarities, including Clint Barton having a nocked arrow at the ready against a purple city backdrop in the cutout shape of an arrow. And of course, the lettering is identical as well.
However, there are some differences, such as the presence of Hailee Steinfeld’s fan-favorite character Kate Bishop and Lucky the dog joining Jeremy Renner’s Clint Barton.
This isn’t the first time Disney has received flack for not paying original comic creators their dues, either. Thanos creator Jim Starlin and Captain America writer and Winter Soldier co-creator Ed Brubaker made similar complaints about Marvel Studios’ use of their creations without credit or proper compensation.
Hawkeye comes to Disney Plus on Nov. 24.