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The negative response to Captain America: Brave New World has begged broader questions about Marvel exec Kevin Feige, especially amid criticism from Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld.
In case you missed it, Brave New World premiered earlier this month to decidedly tepid reviews and an even more lackluster box office haul. The film, which sees Anthony Mackie take the Captain America mantle from Chris Evans, has made history (in a bad way), earning the lowest CinemaScore of any movie within the MCU. Yep, the B minus rating, though not particularly low, is nonetheless lowest earned by any film in the franchise.
Heck, even the almost universally loathed Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, The Marvels and Eternals managed to score a B plus on the site, which measures a film’s appeal based on early reactions. On the opposing end of the spectrum, Brave New World’s rating pales in comparison to titles like The Avengers, Black Panther, and Avengers: Endgame, which each earned a respectable A plus CinemaScore.
The disastrous score has placed increased scrutiny on Marvel boss Kevin Feige, who has been called out by Liefeld in a recent episode of the Deadpool creator’s Robservations podcast. The comic book writer, who created both Deadpool and Cable, revealed that he is severing ties with Marvel after more than three decades in its orbit, citing multiple slights levelled against him by Feige.
Dogpool makes a red carpet appearance at the #DeadpoolandWolverine New York premiere. pic.twitter.com/3nifpRLQvZ
— Variety (@Variety) July 22, 2024
One such moment was at the July premiere of Deadpool & Wolverine in New York, where Liefeld claims he was ignored by Feige on the red carpet, and that he and his family were not invited to the after party. Liefeld also claimed that photos of himself and the Deadpool & Wolverine team were deleted, and that his request to receive a special credit at the beginning of the film was denied by Feige and other Marvel bosses. “It was meant to embarrass, diminish, defeat me,” Liefeld said of the apparent in-fighting led by Feige.
In a follow-up interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Liefeld declared that “Marvel’s treatment of creators has never been their strength,” adding that “without the worlds, the characters and the concepts that we create… there are no films to shoot.” Liefeld then doubled-down on his thoughts of Feige while commenting on Brave New World’s box office slump over the weekend, which saw an 82.4% drop from the film’s domestic opening day. “Get Feige off the mound,” Liefeld wrote in response to the news. “He’s spent.”
Get Feige off the mound. He’s spent. https://t.co/5EimiviiBt
— robliefeld (@robertliefeld) February 22, 2025
That message was met with a mixed reaction from fans, but it’s not the first time Liefeld has taken aim at a major comic book studio. In 2023, the Deadpool creator set his sights on DC, saying the studio lost its way after the release of Man Of Steel and had “skip[ped] steps trying to exceed Marvel.” Given the Deadpool franchise’s penchant for fourth-wall breaking, we wouldn’t be surprised if, in the next entry, a jab was hurled Liefeld’s way as a result of his comments.