Finally, Marvel has got the rights back to their own original King of the Sea, Namor the Submariner! Is this a done deal, and will they introduce him the same way they did for the Incredible Hulk? Speaking with Kevin Smith on the Fat Man on Batman podcast, Quesada mentions that Namor’s film and TV rights are back with Marvel Studios. He joins the Avengers characters like Captain America/Iron Man/Thor, Doctor Strange, the Guardians of the Galaxy and other related cosmic heroes, and now Spider-Man as some of the characters available for the big screen.
Created by Bill Everett in 1939 and was one of the first Marvel characters ever to grace the pages of Marvel Comics, then known as Timely Comics. While he is quite similar to DC Comics’ Aquaman character in both origin and powers, Namor did actually arrive two years before Arthur Curry. Namor McKenzie is the child of American sea captain Leonard McKenzie and Fen, the daughter of the Atlantean emperor. His mixed genetics resulted in various powers that set him apart from the blue-skinned Atlanteans and the humans they hid from. Some of these powers include flight, super strength/speed/agility, and invulnerability. He did at one time also control animal life, though that power was soon abandoned, most likely due to the continuing comparisons between Aquaman and Namor.
Namor has been suspiciously absent from the MCU, with rumors and discussions about the iconic Marvel character appearing on the interwebs every few months. We knew from previous discussions with Kevin Feige that Namor’s inclusion in the MCU was being held back due to a number of tricky rights issues. When asked about Namor and Marvel Studios use of the character:
“It’s slightly more complicated than that. Let’s put it this way – there are entanglements that make it less easy. There are older contracts that still involve other parties that mean we need to work things out before we move forward on it. As opposed to an Iron Man or any of the Avengers or any of the other Marvel characters where we could just put them in.”
We’ve seen issues like this before, like with Hulk’s distribution rights at Universal Pictures keeping him out of his own solo film for the foreseeable future. Or of course the recent partnership with Sony that allows Marvel to work with Spider-Man, despite Sony still owning the film rights. And of course we are no stranger to the constant back and forth between Marvel and Fox, who hold the rights to both the X-Men and the Fantastic Four, and all the characters that exist within.
Namor’s film rights were previously held by Universal Studios, along with the Hulk, though it’s unclear if it’s the same type of distribution deal. With the latest news from Quesada it sounds like the rights option may have expired and reverted to Marvel, much like what we’ve seen recently with the return of Daredevil, Blade, and Ghost Rider to Marvel Studios.