
It is no secret that, for the past several years, The Walt Disney Company has been struggling with its streaming service, Disney+. Disney+ launched in November 2019, and saw some great initial success, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic hit just a few months later. Sadly, the perceived success was short-lived. Each quarter, Disney announces that it has lost hundreds of millions of dollars on Disney+. The amount the company has lost now sits at over $11 billion.
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Despite its struggles, Disney+ has seen some success. Hocus Pocus 2, which was made for Disney+, was one of the most streamed movies on the platform ever. Disney also saw success with Disney+ when it released Elemental and the live-action remake of The Little Mermaid. Elemental wasn’t a theatrical hit, but became one of the most popular movies on Disney+.
The studio giant has also experienced a lot of success with its original series from Marvel Studios. Beginning with WandaVision, which premiered in 2021, many Marvel shows have been a bigger hit than the last. After WandaVision, there was The Falcon & the Winter Soldier, Loki, What If…?, Hawkeye, Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel, and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.
Out of all those series, the only animated one was What If…?, but that doesn’t mean that Disney wasn’t interested in more animation. In fact, on March 20, a brand-new series is set to launch, X-Men ’97. The show will be based on, and a continuation of, the popular 90s show, X-Men: The Animated Series. X-Men: The Animated Series ran from 1992 through 1997, and aired on FOX.
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In a shocking twist, it has been revealed that Marvel Studios has fired the creator of X-Men ’97, Beau DeMayo. According to The Hollywood Reporter, DeMayo’s company email was deactivated and the cast and crew were informed that he was no longer with the company.
It was surprising turn of events on the eve of the show’s March 20 debut. Splitting with writers is a normal part of business for Marvel or any studio. However, it is unusual for a top creative on a Marvel project to miss a premiere or cancel press plans last minute, even if they’ve been shuffled to the side. Most Marvel premieres feature multiple screenwriters walking the red carpet, some of whom had been rewritten by other writers also walking the carpet.
DeMayo had been using a personal Instagram account to promote the new show, but that account has been deleted.
DeMayo had been with Marvel for three years and had worked on a number of projects, including Moon Knight. He had also worked on early drafts of Marvel’s newest Blade film, which will star Mahershala Ali.
It does not appear that DeMayo was anticipating being fired by the company. According to sources who spoke to THR, the creator/writer had planned press events and was also scheduled to appear at the show’s March 13 premiere. He was even reportedly talking about plans for the show’s third season, since the first two have already been written.
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Disney, Marvel, and DeMayo have not commented on his firing.
X-Men ’97 will premiere on Disney+ on March 20. The series will star Jennifer Hale as the voice of Jean Grey, Ray Chase as Cyclops, and Lenore Zann as Rogue. Cal Dodd will play Wolverine, Matthew Waterson will voice Magneto, JP Karliak will voice Morph, and Chris Potter will play Gambit.
Will you be watching X-Men ’97 when it premieres on Disney+? Are you shocked by this firing? Let us know in the comments!