While the subject of royalties from the Big Two comic book publishers has led many writers and artists to look to independent companies, CCO Jim Lee said there's an advantage to bringing a creator-owned project to DC.
Lee spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about the future of DC and how publishing will remain at the forefront. He was then asked about the recent series The Nice House on the Lake by James Tynion IV, Alvaro Martinez Bueno, and Jordie Bellaire, which debuted to much acclaim as part of a new era of creator-owned comics from DC in the wake of Vertigo's end and the launch of its replacement, DC Black Label.
"There are a lot of options for creators these days but not every creator wants to be the entrepreneur and handle every facet of the production," Lee said of the advantage creators have when they join DC. "Some people find great pleasure in just focusing on what got them here to begin with, which is creating and telling stories."
"So being able to partner with someone like DC that can handle the marketing and the publicity and the sales and the production is a boon for people who don’t want to dive in and take on every responsibility," Lee continued. "And the fact that we are part of this giant media company offers the chance for their project to be adapted into other media. So there are big positives to partnering with DC."
Of course, many creatives have found that getting their characters into a film or TV show isn't the boon it would seem. Marvel writer Ed Brubaker recently revealed he received more from his cameo in Captain America: The Winter Soldier than he did for creating The Winter Soldier himself, who recently featured in his own Disney+ series. DC, meanwhile, has faced similar claims over the years.
Despite the end of Vertigo, however, Lee still sees DC as a great home for creatives, though he admitted creator-owned content will decrease. "Given our objectives and how we want to grow the business, we’re still going to be doing creator-owned books, but it probably won’t be on the same level that existed before, with the Vertigo imprint," Lee said. "We’re picking and choosing the right projects that will make the most impact."
"With a smaller staff, we can’t expect to do everything we did before," Lee continued. "But a lot of what we did before didn’t necessarily bring the greatest return. So where do we place our bets? What do we need to invest in?"
Though DC Black Label has so far been home to mostly top-tier superheroes getting standalone stories, many of them focusing on Batman, a few other projects have seen the light of day. Along with Nice House on the Lake, Jeff Lemire released Sweet Tooth: The Return on the imprint, bringing back his hit Vertigo comic that recently received a Netflix adaptation.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
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