| 1 | Elements ExiledFromContinuity for commercial and/or corporate reasons (usually branding). It is these that really get up in people's rig, since said reasons can be rather arbitrary or ill-explained. These are almost entirely the result of ExecutiveMeddling. |
| 2 | ---- |
| 3 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 4 | |
| 5 | [[folder:Anime and Manga]] |
| 6 | * Syaoran and the rest of the four main cast members from ''Manga/TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' didn't appear or were mentioned in the anime adaptation of ''Anime/XXXHolic'' by Creator/ProductionIG because its anime adaptation by Creator/BeeTrain was airing at that time, which put the TRC characters (including the white Mokona or Soel) in embargo. With that, the staff had to compensate with the appearance of black Mokona (Larg) by having her jump out of the storage room when Watanuki was cleaning on his first day in Yuko's shop instead of being together with Soel in stasis and found by Watanuki in the storage. However, Yuuko did appear in the TRC anime since her role is very vital to Syaoran's group while Watanuki made a few cameo appearances. In fact, this is somewhat similar to Quicksilver's situation above; provided that Yuuko is a very important character in the ''TRC/xxxHolic''-verse, she appeared in both animes but Watanuki would have to be in ''xxxHolic'' because it's his story and any connection to TRC would not be mentioned. |
| 7 | ** Production IG is responsible for the original TRC movie which ties to the xxxHolic movie but Bee Train and NHK got dibs on the TRC characters for the TV series. After the show ended, Production IG took charge in producing the TRC [=OVAs=] which features the Acid!Tokyo and Nihon arcs and disregards the latter filler episodes from the TV series. However, the xxxHolic [=OVAs=], particularly the one [[spoiler:which details Yuuko's death and Watanuki inheriting the shop]], never explained the reasons behind it since it's tied to TRC. |
| 8 | [[/folder]] |
| 9 | |
| 10 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 11 | * The ComicBook/AmalgamUniverse was a joint crossover project between Creator/DCComics and Creator/MarvelComics, and so neither company can use elements of it without the permission of the other. This means that Marvel couldn't use "Spider-Boy" characters (ComicBook/SpiderMan[=/=]ComicBook/{{Superboy}} mashups) in ''ComicBook/SpiderVerse'' and DC couldn't use any Amalgam character in ''ComicBook/{{Convergence}}''. In fact, crossover events between intellectual properties under different ownership in general tend to fall under this trope, since any later {{Continuity Nod}}s that might be made to the crossover will have to be vague by necessity. This is also presumably why Access, a character joint-owned by Marvel and DC, never appears anymore. |
| 12 | * Despite (and because of) being the most popular character in Creator/ChaosComics' stable, the rights to ComicBook/LadyDeath remained with creator Brian Pulido while the other Chaos! properties were sold. Lady Death is currently being published in her own series by Boundless Comics, while the other Chaos! characters were kept together through several revivals, the latest (as of this writing) by Creator/DynamiteComics. Given how pivotal Lady Death was to the original Chaos! Comics universe, this has led to some in-universe weirdness, like Lady Demon, who started out as Lady Death's [[EnemyWithout split personality]], appearing in her own series by Dynamite, and vague references to Evil Ernie's obsession with Lady Death when he appeared in ''ComicBook/HackSlash.'' In the Dynamite revival, Lady Death has been replaced by [[SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute Lady Hel]]. All this was actually {{lampshade|Hanging}}d in the "Malevolent Decimation" story arc from Lady Death's latest publisher, Coffin Comics, where Lady Death [[FaceHeelTurn temporarily returns to her early Chaos! Comics personality and motivations]] due to an enemy's supernatural manipulations. Evil Ernie and events from the Chaos! continuity are broadly hinted at. |
| 13 | * ''Franchise/DCComics'': |
| 14 | ** It's believed that a contributing factor to the planned ''ComicBook/{{Nightwing}}'' movie ending up in DevelopmentHell is that the live-action ''Series/{{Titans|2018}}'' TV series featured Dick Grayson as a main character. Likewise, there has been some speculation that ComicBook/{{Cyborg}} being a main character in the ''Series/{{Doom Patrol|2019}}'' TV series may be part of the reason why there's been no movement on the planned ''Cyborg'' solo movie that was announced back in 2014. |
| 15 | ** Similarly, one of the alleged reasons that the ComicBook/WonderWoman prequel series ''Amazon'' never made it to air is that it was in production right around the time WB finally started serious pre-production on a ''Film/{{Wonder Woman|2017}}'' live-action movie. |
| 16 | ** Similar to the Bat-Embargo, ComicBook/HarleyQuinn was barred from appearing in Season 3 of ''Series/{{Arrow}}'' because of her role in the ''Film/{{Suicide Squad|2016}}'' movie. She had been given a brief ContinuityCameo in Season 2 (shown only from behind), but future planned appearances were axed once the movie was officially given the go-ahead from WB. ComicBook/{{Deadshot}} and Amanda Waller were killed off in Seasons 3 & 4 respectively for the same reason (though Captain Boomerang, another character who had appeared in ''Arrow'' and in the Suicide Squad film, was instead a ''former'' member of the Squad whom served as the main villain for the ''Arrow'' portion of the crossover between ''Arrow'' and ''The Flash'', and was locked up in the same prison as Deathstroke mentioned below, though ultimately being let out and killed off in the season 5 finale around the same time Deathstroke was freed). [[ComicBook/BlueBeetle Ted Kord]] was intended to have a recurring role in Season 3 (building off mentions to his company Kord Industries); before the season started filming, DC Executives pulled an embargo due to having unspecified plans for Blue Beetle in the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse (rumoured to be a team-up/buddy flick with ComicBook/BoosterGold), and the character was rewritten to be [[ComicBook/TheAtom Ray Palmer]]. The writers also got around the Deadshot embargo by having his Earth-2 counterpart (ironically, a ''terrible'' shot, who can't hit a target from six feet away) show up in Season 2 of ''Series/TheFlash2014''. Season 7 of ''Arrow'' briefly resurrected the Suicide Squad under another LawyerFriendlyCameo as the Ghost Initiative. |
| 17 | ** Anatoly Knyazev, [=KGBeast=] in the comics, was depicted as an old ally of Green Arrow in the show's second season, but was presumed to be absentee from seasons 3 and 4 due to the same character appearing as TheDragon to Lex Luthor in ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'', only finally appearing again in season 5 when Batman killed [=KGBeast=] in the film. |
| 18 | ** ComicBook/{{Deathstroke}} was also exiled from the Arrowverse continuity right around the time Deadshot was killed off. Slade was not dead though - just sitting in his cell in Lian Yu, seemingly never to be seen or heard from again due to his appearances in the upcoming ''Justice League'' movie and the solo Creator/BenAffleck Batman SpinOff. As a LawyerFriendlyCameo, his son Grant, the first Ravager (and whose DeathByOriginStory was the central reason for Slade opposing the ComicBook/TeenTitans) is depicted as the new Deathstroke, and leader of a Deathstroke Gang, of a possible future seen in ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow'', a different future seen later in ''Arrow'' season 7 nullifying this future. However, as rewrites of DCEU movies resulted in Deathstroke no longer being in the ''Justice League'' movie and ''The Batman'' script undergoing total rewrite, Arrow!Slade's TheBusCameBack, with him appearing again in Seasons 5 and 6. However, now that he HAS appeared in ''Film/{{Justice League|2017}},'' they're apparently losing him again, as the show's version of his son Joe (Teen Titans member Jericho, a mute metahuman who can possess people) becomes another Deathstroke and a member of the aforementioned Ghost Initiative in season 7, and season 8 brings back the Deathstroke Gang to the altered future, with the reveal of [[AntagonisticOffspring JJ Diggle]] now leading them, though Grant is established as the previous leader. It is also presumed, like with Nightwing above, that Deathstroke's appearance in the second season of ''Titans'' was allowed due to the lack of development on the solo ''Deathstroke'' movie, as well as the character being removed from the revamped ''Film/{{The Batman|2022}}'' movie. |
| 19 | ** ''Series/{{Titans|2018}}'' itself was hit with several character restrictions. Though Bruce Wayne and Barbara Gordon were allowed to appear in plainclothes, they were not shown in costume as Batman or ComicBook/{{Batgirl}}, likely due to their planned live-action film projects at the time.[[note]]Batman did appear in a LotusEaterMachine Dick experienced at the end of Season 1, but was deliberately only shown in glimpses.[[/note]] Similarly, while ComicBook/TheJoker's murder of Jason Todd was adapted in the Season 3 premier, the Joker himself was never shown in full ''and'' was killed offscreen by the end of the episode, seemingly to avoid any perceived conflict with the Creator/JoaquinPhoenix ''Film/{{Joker|2019}}'' movie or Creator/MattReeves' usage of the character in ''Film/{{The Batman|2022}}''. Lastly, ComicBook/{{Superboy}}'s creator ComicBook/LexLuthor was finally allowed to appear in Season 4 (after previously [[TheGhost having only been mentioned in prior seasons]]), [[spoiler:but the writers were forced to kill him off in the premier, with showrunner Greg Walker later confirming that DC only allowed them to use Lex for a single episode]]. |
| 20 | ** Speaking of ''Titans'', the show's usage of Dick Grayson, Jason Todd and Tim Drake led to the characters being declared off-limits to the CW's ''Series/{{Gotham Knights|2023}}'' pilot. This prompted the otherwise baffling decision to introduce a CanonForeigner SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute named Turner Hayes as Bruce Wayne's adopted son in the ''Gotham Knights'' universe. |
| 21 | ** After several seasons as a series regular, ComicBook/JohnConstantine was removed from the cast of ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow'' due to the new ''Constantine'' series that was planned to air as part of Creator/HBOMax's ''ComicBook/JusticeLeagueDark'' project. In an unusual example of this trope, the creators were at least able to keep Creator/MattRyan, Constantine's actor, on the show by [[IdenticalStranger recasting him as new character instead]]. It was also widely speculated that this is why Netflix’s ''Series/{{The Sandman|2022}}'' series replaced John with a CanonForeigner named Johanna Constantine[[note]]The original comics featured a character named Lady Johanna Constantine as John's ancestor, but her [[IdenticalGrandson identical descendent]] was created exclusively for the live-action show.[[/note]] (with some fans initially believing her to be an outright GenderFlip of John), but Creator/NeilGaiman himself eventually stepped in and explained that the change was planned before news of the HBO Max series broke. |
| 22 | ** Initially, the writers of ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' wanted to do a similar series about [[ComicBook/{{Batman}} Bruce Wayne]] rather than Clark Kent. They got vetoed because [[Film/TheDarkKnightTrilogy another Batman movie was in the works]]. This also prevented them from doing a storyline where Bruce Wayne comes to Metropolis, leading to the recurring 3rd season character Adam Knight (name being a play on [[Series/Batman1966 Adam West]] and the Dark Knight nickname) who was a CaptainErsatz of Batman before he was turned evil and ComicBook/GreenArrow becoming a recurring character in seasons 6 and 7 and gaining main character status in season 8. As with ''JLU'', other minor DCU characters have gotten the ''Smallville'' treatment and thus have been better highlighted. Interestingly, there's a reference to Oliver Queen as early as the very first episode, implying that they'd seen this coming from the start. |
| 23 | ** ComicBook/WonderWoman was also not allowed to appear on ''Smallville'', leading to nearly four seasons where all non-original superheroes who appeared on the show were men. Then ComicBook/BlackCanary came on board. The final season featured a scene where Chloe Sullivan implied that she had met both Batman and Wonder Woman during her globe-trotting adventures, with the implication that they would end up meeting Clark sometime after the show's final episode. |
| 24 | ** ''Series/{{Gotham}}'' was never allowed to directly have either Jerome Valeska or Jeremiah Valeska ([[ActingForTwo both played by]] Creator/CameronMonaghan) be ComicBook/TheJoker. Similarly, Bruce Wayne was allowed to suit up, but never directly named as Batman, only being named as the Dark Knight in the GrandFinale. |
| 25 | ** It's widely believed that for many years, DC did not allow the character ComicBook/BlackLightning to appear in any DC animation (thus resulting in several [[ElectricBlackGuy expies]]) because that would require paying royalties to the character's creator. This seems to have finally broken in 2009, and the character has since appeared in ''WesternAnimation/SupermanBatmanPublicEnemies'', ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'', ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueCrisisOnTwoEarths'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Young Justice|2010}}'', and a series of WesternAnimation/DCNation shorts. According to ''[=BatB=]'''s staff, the entire thing turned out to be because the legal team were under the impression that DC didn't have rights to the character. When the show's staff asked exactly who did, further investigation turned up the fact that there weren't any legal hang-ups with Black Lightning in the first place. Go figure. |
| 26 | ** ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague Unlimited'' enforced a policy nicknamed by fans as the "Bat-Embargo" that made it so that any prominent ComicBook/{{Batman}} character besides the Caped Crusader himself, a few appearances from ComicBook/{{Huntress}}, and cameos from Creeper, couldn't appear in the series (with the series instead having to make due with lesser-known Batman characters such as Blockbuster and [=KGBeast=], Deadshot only appearing in an episode emphasizing his better known appearances as a ComicBook/SuicideSquad member, and Professor Achilles Milo only having a minor appearance in an episode centered around Doomsday). This was because ''WesternAnimation/TheBatman'' was airing at the same time, and executives were under the impression of [[ViewersAreMorons audiences being unable to grasp the concept of different continuities]]. A similar restriction was in place for ''WesternAnimation/{{Teen Titans|2003}}'', although this one was mutual and prevented Robin from showing up on ''WesternAnimation/TheBatman'' until the fourth season (which gave us ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} [[AdaptationalEarlyAppearance appearing first]])[[note]]It's assumed the restriction also affected minor Batman rogue (and original Batgirl foe) Killer Moth, as he was made a RoguesGalleryTransplant in ''Teen Titans'' and didn't show up on ''The Batman'' until season 4 either when he joined a LegionOfDoom consisting of Penguin, Killer Croc, Rag Doll, and Firefly[[/note]]. This also led to Hugo Strange, who cameos as an operative of Cadmus (and is implied to be why Amanda Waller knows Batman's secret identity) being dropped from the series and replaced with Doctor Moon. Later, when ComicBook/{{Aquaman}} received the failed live-action pilot for the CW, Aquaman and his supporting cast could not appear on JLU either (leading to the creation of "Devil Ray", and, likely, the replacement of Wonder Woman for Aquaman in the plot of "To Another Shore"). |
| 27 | *** Confusingly, rights or confusion issues didn't seem to get in the way of JLU using ''Superman'' characters when ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' was airing concurrently. Unless "No flights, no tights" makes sense as a justifying distinction. |
| 28 | *** Also, both ComicBook/PlasticMan and ComicBook/BlueBeetle were referenced without appearing on-screen in ''Justice League Unlimited''; neither could appear properly due to licensing reasons. Both characters later showed up in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'', and even starred in the first two episodes. Beetle eventually became one of the more recurring characters. |
| 29 | *** The Bat-Embargo didn't go over entirely badly though, since it made room for [[EnsembleDarkhorse interesting minor DCU antagonists]], like ComicBook/AmandaWaller, to appear in animation for the first time. Just goes to show how good writers can work around any problem. Still... not being able to fully complete the ''WesternAnimation/SuperFriends'' MythologyGag of including Scarecrow and the Riddler in the new LegionOfDoom was sad, as was the lack of any ComicBook/RasAlGhul plots. |
| 30 | *** What makes it even sadder is that the writers [[WhatCouldHaveBeen had originally planned]] to do a ''ComicBook/BirdsOfPrey'' episode. |
| 31 | ** ''WesternAnimation/TheBatman'' itself wasn't allowed to use either Two-Face, Scarecrow, or ComicBook/WonderWoman. Its first version of Clayface appears to be a CaptainErsatz for the first of these, being cured by the time a second Clayface based on the more traditional Basil Karlo incarnation debuted, the second was almost reversed but fell through (with Hugo Strange, ironically having made fear toxins like those of Scarecrow long before his debut, having to take the role instead), and the last ended up coming off especially egregious because no attempt was made to have a different heroine take Wonder Woman's place on the ComicBook/{{Justice League|OfAmerica}}. Likewise, ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'' was denied use of Superman and Wonder Woman during its first two seasons. |
| 32 | ** Not that Bat-Embargos were new... back in the days of the ''WesternAnimation/SuperFriends'', when the ''Challenge'' series (with the Legion of Doom) took place, Creator/{{Filmation}}'s ''WesternAnimation/TheNewAdventuresOfBatman'' was still on the air. That's why you'd never see Joker or ComicBook/{{Catwoman}} on the Legion of Doom. The Joker and Penguin appeared in one episode each of ''Superfriends'' during the ''Galactic Guardians'' series, after the Filmation cartoon's license on him had run out (and, of course, [[MerchandiseDriven both had figures in the Super Powers Collection]]). On the other hand, Riddler and Scarecrow could not be seen on ''New Adventures'' (except for the former in the opening sequence, inexplicably in a '''pink''' costume). |
| 33 | ** On the subject of licensing embargoes in Batman cartoons, Creator/PaulDini had an idea for a ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode that would've seen ComicBook/PoisonIvy seduce ComicBook/SwampThing. He abandoned the plot after it turned out that Swamp Thing's animation rights belonged to another party (presumably Creator/DicEntertainment, who produced the short-lived ''WesternAnimation/SwampThing'' cartoon) at the time. |
| 34 | ** In 1979, a pair of live-action specials loosely based on the ''WesternAnimation/{{Superfriends}}'' cartoon titled ''Series/LegendsOfTheSuperheroes'' aired on Creator/{{NBC}}. Superman and Wonder Woman could not be used in the specials because Superman had [[Film/SupermanTheMovie his own movie]] released the year prior and [[Series/WonderWoman1975 Wonder Woman's television series]] was airing on rival network Creator/{{CBS}}. To get around this, Superman was replaced with Captain Marvel and Wonder Woman's place was taken by the Huntress and Black Canary. |
| 35 | ** The cameo of the ComicBook/{{Justice League|Of America}} in the first season finale of ''Series/{{Peacemaker|2022}}'' featured the entire team except for Batman and ComicBook/{{Cyborg}}. [[FakeShemp Stand-ins for Batman and Cyborg]] actually were present when the scene was filmed, but the uncertain futures of both characters at the time[[note]]Creator/BenAffleck had publicly stated his intention to retire from the role in ''Film/TheFlash2023'', with it being rumored that Creator/MichaelKeaton would take over as the [[Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse DCEU]] Batman, while Creator/RayFisher refused to work for Warner Brothers unless DC Studios head Walter Hamada was fired (Hamada ''was'' fired later on long after the finalized cameo was produced, but his replacements immediately rebooting the franchise seemingly rendered the Fisher situation moot).[[/note]] led to their removal. |
| 36 | ** ''Film/{{Black Adam|2022}}'' had to write Stargirl out of its version of the ComicBook/JusticeSocietyOfAmerica due to the ''Series/{{Stargirl|2020}}'' TV series, leading to her being replaced with Cyclone (who even gained her implied romantic interest in Atom Smasher). Creator/DwayneJohnson also confirmed that Hawkgirl was deemed off-limits due to certain unspecified restrictions. Lastly, DC Studios head Walter Hamada initially vetoed a planned appearance from Superman[[note]]Superman had been in limbo on film since 2017 due to contractual disputes, with it being heavily rumored that ''Film/TheFlash2023'' was originally going to outright [[RetGone wipe the character from continuity]] and replace him with ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}.[[/note]], but Hamada's removal from power following the Warner Brothers-Discovery merger allowed the filmmakers to shoot a last minute cameo from Creator/HenryCavill as the character just before release. |
| 37 | ** Due to a long-stalled film project, the John Stewart version of ComicBook/GreenLantern was barred from appearing in ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'', with a previously-filmed cameo of the character [[DeletedRole being deleted]] and replaced with a similar appearance from ComicBook/MartianManhunter. The same restrictions also initially kept John and his predecessor Hal Jordan from being used in the Creator/HBOMax ''Green Lantern'' series, with the writers instead having to focus on other [=GL=]s like Guy Gardner, Jessica Cruz and Alan Scott. However, after a massive executive shakeup at Creator/DCStudios following the 2022 purchase of WB by Discovery, Stewart and Jordan were ultimately allowed to be used as the series' main protagonists. |
| 38 | ** The embargo on Batman due to his films also extends to his multiverse doppelgangers from ''ComicBook/DarkNightsMetal'', as a director for ''Series/TheFlash2014'' was told he couldn't depict Red Death as a version of Bruce Wayne or Thomas Wayne, forcing the show to make the character a version of [[Series/Batwoman2019 Ryan Wilder]]. |
| 39 | ** Creator/PaulDini and Creator/BruceTimm wanted to use the original ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}, Kara Zor-El, in ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries'', but were denied by DC Comics due to their mandate that Superman was to remain the only surviving Kryptonian. Eventually, Kara Zor-El became Kara In-Ze, who comes from Argos, a sister planet to Krypton, and whose race are similar to Kryptonians. |
| 40 | * Creator/MarvelComics: |
| 41 | ** The ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' storyline ''ComicBook/SpiderVerse'' promised to show off "Every. Spider-Man. Ever.", but there are a few that couldn't be used. Eight were mentioned, but seven were confirmed - the Creator/TobeyMaguire Spider-Man from the ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'', the Creator/AndrewGarfield Spider-Man from ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderManSeries'', the Spider-Man from ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheNewAnimatedSeries'', the Spider-Man from ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' and Spider-Boy/Spider-Boy 2099 from the above-mentioned ''ComicBook/AmalgamUniverse''. The Live-Action and Cartoon ones are owned by Sony and the Amalgam characters co-owned by Creator/DCComics as Spider-Boy is one-half Spider-Man, one half ComicBook/{{Superboy}}. However, in ''Spider-Verse'' #2, the Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield Spider-Men were indirectly mentioned as being part of the army of Spider-Men (one Spider-Man mentioned a version of Spidey who "looked just like the guy in ''Film/{{Seabiscuit}}''" while the Spider-Man he was talking to said he thought he "saw the guy from ''Film/TheSocialNetwork''"). In addition, Spider-Boy makes a ([[LawyerFriendlyCameo mostly obscured]]) cameo appearance in the group shot at the issue's end. |
| 42 | *** On the front of the ''Spider-Man Trilogy'' and ''The Amazing Spider-Man Series'' versions of the character, a [[Film/SpiderManNoWayHome film]] that was somewhat based on ''Spider-Verse'' would be produced by Sony in-house, albeit only within the confines of allowing those two universes to interact with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, [[spoiler:complete with their respective versions of Spider-Man actually appearing and interacting with the Spider-Man portrayed by Creator/TomHolland.]] |
| 43 | ** Herbie the Robot infamously replaced the ComicBook/HumanTorch on ''WesternAnimation/TheFantasticFour1978'' cartoon because Universal had the rights to the Human Torch for another project but never used them. It's not the case as rumored that worrying network executives feared that children would attempt to light themselves on fire. The rights problem was even jokingly alluded to in ''Fantastic Four'' #209. |
| 44 | --->'''Human Torch:''' I was out of town the day the contracts needed to be signed. |
| 45 | ** Rights issues similarly prevented the Human Torch from being in ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManAndHisAmazingFriends'' and thus led to the creation of Firestar as a {{Gender Flip}}ped {{Expy}}. |
| 46 | ** The Creator/HannaBarbera ''[[WesternAnimation/TheFantasticFour1967 Fantastic Four]]'' cartoon was unable to use [[ComicBook/SubMariner Namor]], since his rights were tied up in ''WesternAnimation/TheMarvelSuperHeroes''. Prince Triton was created as an {{Expy}}. Likewise, ComicBook/AntMan couldn't be used in the show's adaptation of "The Micro World of Doctor Doom", so he was simply AdaptedOut. |
| 47 | ** The Hanna-Barbera Fantastic Four cartoon also caused problems concerning rights issues with ''The Marvel Super Heroes'' with the Sub-Mariner episode "Doctor Doom's Day/Doomed Allegiance/Tug of Death". In spite of Doctor Doom appearing in the episode, Grantray-Lawrence Animation could not secure the rights to the Fantastic Four because of their use in the 1967 cartoon, so they got around the restriction by [[RoguesGalleryTransplant making Doom an enemy of the X-Men]], who were referred to as the Allies for Peace for unknown reasons and operated from the Baxter Building (which was similarly renamed the Peace Building). |
| 48 | ** Sandman could not appear on ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries'' or the concurrently-running ''WesternAnimation/FantasticFourTheAnimatedSeries'' because he was to be the villain in the aborted Creator/JamesCameron film. The writers attempted to get around the Sandman ban by using Hydro-Man in his place. Meanwhile, the ''Fantastic Four'' cartoon's version of the Frightful Four had to replace Sandman with Hydro-Man in its otherwise very faithful adaptation of the "[[ComicBook/TheInhumans Inhumans Saga]]" storyline from the [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] comics. Electro was the other villain meant to be used in the Cameron film, preventing his use for most of the series, but the film fell through while the show was still running, so they eventually wrote him in with a completely different identity than his usual one, which had the interesting effect of highlighting just how dangerous someone with Electro's powers would be if they used them intelligently, something the ordinary Electro struggles with. |
| 49 | ** Marvel made a deal with Sony and regained the animation rights for ''Spider-Man'' at the end of ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'''s run. Hence, due to only regaining the animation rights at-the-time recently, Spidey wasn't able to appear on ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperHeroSquadShow'' despite one: having toys on the ''SHS'' toy line and two: most every other prominent Marvel character appearing in the series as well. (He did make a retroactive appearance via ''WesternAnimation/{{Ultimate Spider|Man2012}}-Man'', though.) |
| 50 | ** Spider-Man can really suffer from this. For the many different Marvel cartoons out there, Spider-Man rarely ever crossed over for any team-ups. He did formally appear on the 70s ''Spider-Woman'' cartoon series, but outside of that? Borderline {{Lawyer Friendly Cameo}}es on ''WesternAnimation/XMenTheAnimatedSeries'' and ''WesternAnimation/FantasticFourWorldsGreatestHeroes''. In fact, in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/FantasticFourTheAnimatedSeries'', viewers can see a cameo of ComicBook/ScarletSpider instead of ol' web-head. Before 2012, if Spidey was going to team-up with another hero, it had to be on one of his shows instead of one of theirs. |
| 51 | ** On the subject of cartoons, ComicBook/GhostRider was barred from appearing in ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries'' because Marvel had pitched a ''Ghost Rider'' cartoon to Creator/{{UPN}} (the channel that aired ''WesternAnimation/{{The Incredible Hulk|1996}}''), which led to Fox refusing to promote a superhero who could have potentially ended up on a rival network. The aforementioned ''Hulk'' cartoon airing on UPN also prevented the Hulk from appearing on ''Spider-Man: The Animated Series'', limiting the character to being occasionally mentioned and preventing him from appearing in the three-part adaptation of ''ComicBook/{{Secret Wars|1984}}'' (his role was filled by The Lizard instead). |
| 52 | ** Ike Perlmutter eventually instituted an extremely controversial embargo on characters whose movie rights were owned by other studios, preventing them from appearing in other adaptations. X-Men and Fantastic Four characters were barred from appearing in the later seasons of the cartoons that made up the shared WesternAnimation/{{Marvel Universe|DisneyXD}} continuity. As a result, ComicBook/TheInhumans, who Perlmutter pushed as X-Men substitutes, were more heavily incorporated into those shows in their place.[[note]]Those shows, much like the comics, used the Terrigen Wave that spread worldwide to activate various Inhumans, but without the X-Men appearing. The retcon that the Terrigen Mists cause M-Pox (an affliction lethal to mutants) is not acknowledged, taking a lot of the controversial baggage from the Inhumans' newfound prominence off of them.[[/note]] |
| 53 | *** ''WesternAnimation/{{Ultimate Spider|Man2012}}-Man'' featured ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} and several X-Men villains like ComicBook/{{Sabretooth}}, the ComicBook/{{Juggernaut|MarvelComics}} and Mesmero in the early seasons. However, by the time the series was nearing the end of Season 3, the ban was in place, preventing Wolverine and the baddies from returning for the ''ComicBook/{{Contest of Champions|1982}}'' adaptation (which notably brought back a bunch of other heroes and villains from prior episodes). By the time of Season 4, mutant characters (save for ComicBook/SquirrelGirl, who, despite being a mutant, traditionally had little to no interaction with the X-Men) ceased appearing altogether. Fantastic Four member Thing, and the team's rogues Doctor Doom and the Frightful Four (consisting of Wizard, Klaw, Thundra, and Trapster), also appeared in the earlier seasons, and disappeared from the show when the mandate was set into place. |
| 54 | *** The first season of ''WesternAnimation/AvengersAssemble'' heavily featured the Fantastic Four villain [[Characters/MarvelComicsDoctorDoom Doctor Doom]] as a recurring adversary. The embargo went into effect prior to Season 2, resulting in Doom being unceremoniously dropped from the show and never even being mentioned again. The same goes for the FF characters ComicBook/TheThing and Impossible Man, as well as the X-Men villain Mojo, who all ceased appearing after Season 1. This was particularly notable when ''ComicBook/{{Civil War|2006}}'' was adapted in Season 3, which, despite the heavy emphasis on a SuperheroRegistrationAct that caused turmoil in the superhuman community, never once mentioned the existence of mutants or the Fantastic Four. Additionally, while the show's cast was chosen to reflect what was going on in the MCU at the time, neither ComicBook/ScarletWitch nor ComicBook/{{Quicksilver}} (who, as explained below, were in an odd situation where both Fox and Marvel Studios shared their film rights) ever made any sort of appearance, even when ComicBook/TheVision joined the team in Season 4. |
| 55 | *** Spider-Man joined the team as a reserve Avenger in Season 2, but could not be used after this. This was presumably due to ''Ultimate Spider-Man'' ending after its fourth season and being replaced with a new show, ''WesternAnimation/MarvelsSpiderMan'', which was set in a separate continuity. This became subverted when Spider-Man returned in the show's fifth and final season, but based on his depiction in ''Marvel's Spider-Man'', suggesting that rather than being a separate universe, it had overwritten the events of ''Ultimate Spider-Man''. |
| 56 | *** A major subplot in ''Avengers: Black Panther's Quest'' revolved around rising tensions between Wakanda and the undersea kingdom of Atlantis. While Atlantis is traditionally led in the comics by [[ComicBook/SubMariner Namor]], Black Panther's rival, the character was seemingly off-limits due to the odd situation regarding his movie rights (mentioned in the Live-Action Film section). Instead, Namor goes unmentioned for the entirety of the series, while Atlantis is led by Attuma, who is not only redesigned to more closely resemble Namor, but also takes over the character's rivalry with the Panther. |
| 57 | *** This also extended to certain pieces of merchandise as well. [[https://www.bleedingcool.com/2015/05/13/replacing-the-ff-and-x-men-on-secret-wars-image-with-marvel-studio-characters/ Bleedingcool reported on a T-shirt being sold at Walmart]] that recreated the iconic cover of ''ComicBook/{{Secret Wars|1984}}'' #1, but with all of the X-Men and Fantastic Four characters (ComicBook/{{Cyclops}}, ComicBook/{{Rogue}}, ComicBook/{{Nightcrawler}}, Storm, the Human Torch, the Thing, Colossus and Wolverine) replaced with characters who have been featured in the MCU (ComicBook/BlackPanther, Daredevil, ComicBook/DoctorStrange, ComicBook/LukeCage, ComicBook/BlackBolt, [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]] and ComicBook/IronFist). It is also believed this was the reason why Creator/{{Hasbro}} ceased including X-Men or FF characters in Marvel Legends waves that weren't exclusively devoted to those franchise, to the point that they weren't allowed to include a classic ComicBook/{{Onslaught}} head in the Red Onslaught Build-A-Figure series, since the wave mostly consisted of Captain America figures. X-Men film merchandise, meanwhile, was completely absent from the Marvel Legends line (with the last Fox movie featured in Legends being ''Film/XMenTheLastStand'', and ''Film/XMenOriginsWolverine'' being the last Fox film to have any toys from Creator/{{Hasbro}} AT ALL) until the merger, with Hasbro eventually doing some figures to celebrate the 20th anniversary of ''Film/XMen1'' in 2020. |
| 58 | *** Likewise, Disney later published a book called ''Marvel: Powers of a Girl'', which highlighted the women of the Marvel Universe. While the book featured a wide range of Marvel heroines like [[Characters/MarvelComicsCarolDanvers Captain Marvel]], ComicBook/SpiderGwen, [[Characters/BlackPantherTitleCharacter Shuri]], ComicBook/{{Valkyrie|Marvel Comics}}, [[Characters/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyModern Gamora]], [[Characters/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyModern Mantis]], the [[ComicBook/TheUnstoppableWasp Wasp]], ComicBook/MonicaRambeau and [[Characters/MarvelComicsKamalaKhan Ms. Marvel]], all of the female X-Men were absent, even the incredibly popular ones like Storm and ComicBook/JeanGrey. |
| 59 | ** When adapting ''Big Hero 6'' from [[ComicBook/SunfireAndBigHero6 an obscure Marvel comic]] to [[WesternAnimation/BigHero6 a Disney animated movie]], both Disney and Marvel mutually agreed to divorce the characters from the Franchise/MarvelUniverse entirely. Not only does the movie not reference any Marvel elements outside of a Creator/StanLee cameo during the credits, but Marvel exiled the team from the comics as well, to the point where Marvel has stated they'll never reprint the old comics. The team's last appearance in Marvel continuity was in 2012, where they appeared in the ''Spider-Man'' storyline ''ComicBook/EndsOfTheEarth''. The exceptions to this exile are Sunfire and Silver Samurai, who, as preexisting characters that originated in the X-Men franchise, were unable to appear in the film to begin with (as their movie rights belonged to Fox, with a version of Silver Samurai appearing in ''Film/TheWolverine''). Thus, they still appear in the comics without issue, with Sunfire even becoming a member of the X-Men again during [[ComicBook/XMen2019 the Krakoa era]]. |
| 60 | ** Marvel notably made comic book tie-ins for Mego's ''ComicBook/{{Micronauts|MarvelComics}}'' toyline and Parker Brothers' ''ComicBook/RomSpaceKnight'', both of which were famous for crossing over with Marvel's other titles and outlasting the toys they were originally created to promote. Nowadays, Marvel no longer has the comic license to either property, as both properties now belong to Creator/{{Hasbro}} and have the comic book licenses owned by Creator/IDWPublishing like most other properties currently owned by Hasbro. Consequently, Marvel isn't allowed to use the Micronauts (save for members Arcturus Rann, Marionette and Bug, who were created for the comic and have occasionally reappeared under the new team name the Microns) or Rom the Space Knight or to reprint either series, with Hasbro and IDW likewise being unable to utilize any characters and elements that were explicitly created for the Marvel comics. |
| 61 | ** The second season of ''WesternAnimation/{{Invincible}}'' adapted [[ComicBook/{{Invincible}} the comic]]'s {{Multiverse}} plot, which included an issue of ''ComicBook/MarvelTeamUp'' where Mark met Spider-Man. Because Spider-Man's televised animation rights are still controlled by Marvel, the show had to replace him with a SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute named Agent Spider, who was voiced by Creator/JoshKeaton from ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan''. |
| 62 | [[/folder]] |
| 63 | |
| 64 | [[folder:Film — Animated]] |
| 65 | * This extends to ''WesternAnimation/TheLegoMovie'' and its sequel/spinoffs, despite Marvel having a successful line of LEGO tie-ins. The movie was made by Creator/WarnerBros, which is why DC characters such as ComicBook/{{Batman}}, ComicBook/WonderWoman, and the ComicBook/{{Justice League|OfAmerica}} make major appearances, but Marvel properties like Iron Man or the Avengers are only mentioned, usually in the form of a TakeThat. |
| 66 | * Since the film rights to the ''Franchise/{{Barbie}}'' franchise were acquired, both Barbie and Ken have been placed off-limits from the ''Franchise/ToyStory'' series. This explains why neither character shows up in the specials ''WesternAnimation/ToyStoryOfTerror'' and ''WesternAnimation/ToyStoryThatTimeForgot''. Pixar got around this embargo by [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abo0VB3BcSU having her appear in]] ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory4'' in a flashback sequence, as well in the ''WesternAnimation/LampLife'' short for a brief cameo; she has no dialogue in both appearances. A similar case happened with the ''Trolls'' franchise. The Troll dolls made appearances in the first three films, but shortly following the release of ''Toy Story 3'', Pixar competitor Creator/DreamWorksAnimation acquired the ''Trolls'' intellectual property in order to make [[WesternAnimation/{{Trolls}} a movie out of them]]. As a result, any doll resembling the Trolls isn't allowed to appear in any ''Toy Story'' media anymore. |
| 67 | * Because the film rights of the ComicBook/XMen and ComicBook/FantasticFour belonged to Creator/TwentiethCenturyFox until its purchase by Disney in 2019, characters from those franchises were not allowed to appear in the direct-to-DVD animated films co-produced by Marvel Studios and Creator/{{Lionsgate}}: |
| 68 | ** One of the main characters of ''WesternAnimation/NextAvengersHeroesOfTomorrow'' is Azari, the son of ComicBook/BlackPanther and [[Characters/MarvelComicsStorm Storm]]. Storm is only seen from behind in a flashback sequence and never gets identified by name, with the opening narration from Iron Man instead calling her T'Challa's "queen." Additionally, while Azari is implicitly a mutant (having inherited superpowers from both parents), that term never gets used to describe him. |
| 69 | ** While [[Characters/MarvelComicsTheIlluminati The Illuminati]] appear in the opening scene of ''WesternAnimation/PlanetHulk'', Mister Fantastic is shown only in shadow, with his face and chest logo deliberately obscured for legal reasons. While [[Characters/MarvelComicsProfessorX Professor X]] and [[ComicBook/SubMariner Namor]] had certain rights issues at the time, they wouldn't have appeared anyway because the original ''ComicBook/PlanetHulk'' story didn't involve them in the plan to send Hulk into space, the former was absent from the Illuminati's meeting to discuss Hulk and the latter opposed the plan and chose not to participate in it. |
| 70 | * Disney's ''WesternAnimation/OnceUponAStudio'' only includes characters created by the main Disney animation studio and thus does not feature any characters from Creator/{{Pixar}}, Creator/TwentiethCenturyStudios, Creator/{{Lucasfilm}} and Creator/MarvelComics. Because of this, [[WesternAnimation/{{Brave}} Merida]] is the only official Franchise/DisneyPrincess to not make any appearance in the short, as she was created by Pixar despite the franchise featuring mostly Princess characters from the Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon. |
| 71 | [[/folder]] |
| 72 | |
| 73 | [[folder:Film — Live-Action]] |
| 74 | * Prior to the conceptualization of the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, Marvel sold off the film rights to its various characters to multiple different studios, making crossovers between them highly unlikely. As time went on and the license agreements began to expire, Marvel Studios started getting more and more of their characters back, integrating them into their shared movie and TV universe. Sometimes though even when Marvel gets a certain character back, they aren't eager to use them in the movies due to already having generated a bunch of cash-cow properties in the meantime and only getting these franchises back in the first place because the previous movie franchises failed at the box office. |
| 75 | -->'''Kevin Feige''': Whenever a character comes back to us, it's usually because the other studios don't want to make the movies anymore - and that usually means the [previous] movies may not have been particularly well-received. They all have potential, but we're not going to say 'We got it back - make it.' |
| 76 | ** ''ComicBook/NickFury'' appeared in a 1998 MadeForTVMovie ''Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' and was supposed to appear in ''Film/FantasticFourRiseOfTheSilverSurfer''. Fox had the rights to the character in 1998, but during production of ''Rise of the Silver Surfer'' found out that their rights to the character had expired and reverted to Marvel, so the writers had to create the character of General Hager as an {{Expy}}. Nick Fury himself kicked off the entire MCU with his then-unexpected appearance in TheStinger for ''Film/IronMan1''. |
| 77 | ** ''ComicBook/BlackPanther'' rights were sold off to Creator/ColumbiaPictures and returned to Marvel in 2005, as Columbia never turned them into an actual film. |
| 78 | ** ''ComicBook/IronMan'' rights were sold off to Creator/NewLineCinema and similarly returned to Marvel in 2005, with the studio never acting on them. |
| 79 | ** ''ComicBook/TheMightyThor'' rights were sold off to Creator/{{Sony}} and fully returned to Marvel in 2006. |
| 80 | ** ''ComicBook/BlackWidow'' rights were sold off to Creator/LionsGate and returned to Marvel in 2006, same year as Thor. |
| 81 | ** ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'' rights were sold to Creator/{{Universal}}, who released ''Film/{{Hulk}}'' by Creator/AngLee in 2003. The film flopped both critically and in box office, leaving Universal in no hurry to produce a sequel until Marvel Studios approached them with an idea for a reboot. 2008's ''Film/{{The Incredible Hulk|2008}}'' was one of the two films that launched the ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'', produced by Marvel Studios but distributed by Universal. The arrangement made at that time meant that Marvel was free to use the character in their movies, but Universal still held the rights to distribute (and keep the profits from) any film with "Hulk" in the title. This is the main reason why another solo Hulk film will not happen in the near future, though Marvel eventually found a way around it by incorporating elements of the fan-favorite ''ComicBook/PlanetHulk'' storyline into ''Film/ThorRagnarok''. Likewise, Creator/DisneyPlus doesn't have access to ''The Incredible Hulk'' likely for the same reason. Supporting characters of Hulk, however, can still get films or TV shows with him featured, as seen with ''Series/SheHulkAttorneyAtLaw''. |
| 82 | ** ComicBook/CaptainAmerica's rights were originally licensed to Cannon Films, which eventually went bankrupt. Afterwards, the rights were transferred to 21st Century Film Corporation, resulting in [[Film/CaptainAmerica1990 the 1990 film]]. The rights eventually reverted to Marvel. Along with ComicBook/IronMan, ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk, ComicBook/TheMightyThor, ComicBook/NickFury and ComicBook/BlackWidow, he was prominent in the MCU since Phase 1, culminating in ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}''. |
| 83 | ** ''ComicBook/{{Blade}}'' rights were sold off to New Line, who made them into the successful ''Film/BladeTrilogy''. Unable to produce the fourth film for various reasons, the rights eventually expired and returned to Marvel in 2011. |
| 84 | ** ''ComicBook/{{Daredevil}}'' rights were sold off to Fox, who made the 2003 ''Film/{{Daredevil}}'' movie and 2005 ''Film/{{Elektra}}'' spinoff. In 2012, the rights returned to Marvel, who used them to create the ''Series/{{Daredevil|2015}}'' TV series, which kicked off the Creator/{{Netflix}} branch of the MCU that would eventually grow into six series interconnected with each other, but for the longest time were mostly separated from the movies due to legal issues. Such issues were resolved in 2021, which allowed Daredevil to appear in ''Film/SpiderManNoWayHome'' and ''Series/SheHulkAttorneyAtLaw'', and ComicBook/TheKingpin in ''Series/{{Hawkeye|2021}}'', finally cementing their canonicity to the greater MCU. |
| 85 | ** ''ComicBook/GhostRider'' rights were sold off to Sony, who released the ''Film/{{Ghost Rider|2007}}'' film in 2007 and ''Film/GhostRiderSpiritOfVengeance'' sequel in 2012. In 2013 the rights returned to Marvel, which allowed for ''ComicBook/AllNewGhostRider'' Robbie Reyes to prominently feature in the fourth season of ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'' |
| 86 | ** ''ComicBook/ThePunisher'' was turned into three standalone, unconnected movies between 1989 and 2008 - one by Artisan Entertainment and two by Lionsgate. Marvel acquired the rights from Lionsgate in 2013, leading to Frank Castle's appearance in season two of ''Series/{{Daredevil|2015}}'', from where he was spun off into his own solo series ''Series/{{The Punisher|2017}}''. |
| 87 | ** ''ComicBook/LukeCage'' rights were sold off to Sony, and returned to Marvel in 2013, with the character appearing in multiple Netflix series, including his own ''Series/{{Luke Cage|2016}}''. |
| 88 | ** Particular oddballs in the licensing issues are ComicBook/ScarletWitch and ComicBook/{{Quicksilver}} who, being equally known in comics as mutants and as Avengers, [[https://moviepilot.com/p/avengers-2-what-s-the-deal-with-the-mutants/395144 had their film rights licensed to BOTH Marvel Studios and Fox]]; the catch was that Marvel Studios could not refer to them as mutants or mention their father [[Characters/MarvelComicsMagneto Magneto]], and Fox could not reference the Avengers through them. In ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'' it's explained that they got their powers due to being experimented on with Loki's scepter (which contained the Mind Stone, one of the six Infinity Stones) by ComicBook/{{HYDRA}} rather than being mutants, with the term "enhanced" used to describe them instead. While Scarlet Witch never actually appeared in any films made by Fox, Quicksilver was featured in the later ''[[Film/XMenFilmSeries X-Men]]'' movies (specifically ''Film/XMenDaysOfFuturePast'', ''Film/XMenApocalypse'', ''Film/DarkPhoenix'' and a cameo in ''Film/Deadpool2'') in addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with Creator/EvanPeters portraying him in the former franchise and Creator/AaronJohnson doing so in the latter. It’s been speculated that the death of the MCU Quicksilver at the end of ''Age of Ultron'' was at least partially due to worries about audiences being confused by two separate versions of the character being used at the same time. After Disney bought Fox, ''Series/WandaVision'' hinted that Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver instead already had powers from a young age, which were amplified by their experimentation, possibly an attempt to retcon their story to bring mutants into canon. |
| 89 | ** On a related note, Fox having the ''X-Men'' license meant that the very concept of mutants couldn't be used in the first three phases of the MCU. In addition to the AdaptationSpeciesChange mentioned for Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, a line where Nick Fury explicitly referenced mutants was cut from the first ''Film/IronMan1'' movie, along with a similar allusion to Spider-Man. On the TV side of things, ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'' initially used the catch-all term "gifted" to refer to characters with superpowers, before introducing [[ComicBook/TheInhumans Inhumans]] in the second season and essentially having them fill the same role traditionally held by mutants in the comics (right down to a storyline involving a cure for Inhuman powers). ''Series/{{Runaways|2017}}'', meanwhile, was still able to use Molly Hayes (a mutant child in the comics), but with the character reimagined as a normal human girl who got superpowers from [[GreenRocks extraterrestrial rocks]] that were being studied by her scientist parents. In 2022, the concept of mutants would formally be introduced into the franchise in both ''[[Series/MsMarvel2022 Ms. Marvel]]'' (by having Ms. Marvel be a mutant [[WhatCouldHaveBeen as originally planned in the comics]] rather than an Inhuman, ironic since former Marvel exec Isaac Perlmutter had been promoting Inhumans as a substitute for mutants) and ''Film/BlackPantherWakandaForever'' (with the debut of Namor). |
| 90 | ** Another casualty of conflicting licenses are entire alien species, restricted from the MCU due to being tied to the ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' rights: |
| 91 | *** The Badoon film rights were firmly held by Fox, so even though Marvel could use them in ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld'' Prelude ''comic'', their proposed appearance in ''Film/{{Guardians of the Galaxy|2014}}'' had to be replaced with Sakaarans, despite the Badoon being the team's traditional enemies. |
| 92 | *** The Skrulls were thought to be off-limits to MCU, which is why the alien invasion force in ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'' used the Chitauri instead. However, it was later revealed that only specific characters (such as the Super-Skrull) belonged to Fox, and the Skrulls featured prominently in the ''Film/{{Captain Marvel|2019}}'' movie, with the most prominent Skrull there being Talos, a lesser Skrull compared to Super-Skrull. Notably, the ''Series/{{Runaways|2017}}'' series was able to use Xavin (a young Super-Skrull in the comics), but had to change the character to a Xartan rather than a Skrull, as well as [[AdaptationalSuperpowerChange revamp her powers]] so that she no longer had the combined abilities of the Fantastic Four. ''Series/{{Secret Invasion|2023}}'', which was produced after the Fox buyout, was finally able to use the concept of a Super-Skrull (thanks to its [[ComicBook/SecretInvasion2008 source material]] introducing several more of them), but without the Fantastic Four around, the individual powers were reworked from other MCU concepts superficially similar to the four's powers, and original character Gravik was the one who had these powers instead of the comics character Kl'rt. |
| 93 | *** The Watchers were also revealed to be another shared case. The Watchers themselves could be used by both studios, but the most famous one, Uatu, was off-limits to Marvel. This allowed a generic group of Watchers to appear in ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2''. The merger later ended the ban, with Uatu becoming the narrator for Marvel's animated ''[[WesternAnimation/WhatIf2021 What If...?]]'' anthology series. |
| 94 | ** In 2015, Marvel made a historic announcement that they were able to negotiate ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' film rights with Sony. That studio had previously released the ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'', but when the fourth film got stuck in DevelopmentHell, leading to the risk of them losing the license like above examples, opted for a full reboot instead of having the rights return to Marvel. ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderManSeries'' was intended to start its own Spider-themed shared universe until the plans fell through due to disappointing reception of ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2''. In this case, Sony kept all their distribution, licensing and merchandising rights and profits from solo movies such as ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'', while Marvel Studios has creative freedom to use the character in both solo films and crossover movies starting with ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar''. Interestingly, [[WhatCouldHaveBeen there were plans]] for a [[http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/06/15/a-spider-manavengers-crossover-almost-happened collaboration between Sony and Marvel even before that]]. Oscorp Tower from ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan'' was supposed to appear in ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', but the CGI modeling for the building couldn't be completed on time and according to Creator/HughJackman himself, he was originally going to make a cameo as ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} in the first ''Film/SpiderMan1'' movie, but plans fell through when nobody could find his costume. |
| 95 | *** Sony eventually still chose to proceed with solo movies focused on Spider-Man's supporting cast in addition to the co-produced MCU Spider-Man films. ''Film/{{Venom|2018}}'' was the first solo movie to be announced, followed by movies dedicated to Film/{{Morbius|2022}}, ComicBook/SilverSable, and ComicBook/BlackCat. Despite the initial suggestion from Amy Pascal that these films would also be set in the MCU, this proved not to be the case, with TheStinger of ''Film/VenomLetThereBeCarnage'' confirming that they take place in an alternate universe. Likewise, ''Film/SpiderManNoWayHome'''s mid-credits sequence [[spoiler:ended with part of the Venom symbiote being left behind in the MCU after Eddie was briefly teleported there, indicating that if Marvel does introduce Venom in the future, their version will not be connected to the one seen in Sony's solo films]]. |
| 96 | *** Spider-Man ''very narrowly'' avoided being exiled again in 2019. After the release of ''Film/SpiderManFarFromHome'', Sony and Disney had a falling out over the original deal (Disney had creative rights and got 5% of box office sales on Spidey's solo films and could use him in their own MCU films, Sony fully financed the solo films and got the remaining 95% profit). Disney proposed a new deal where the two companies would split profits and financing 50-50, which Sony refused.[[note]]Probably realizing that since Marvel had positioned Spidey as the successor of Tony Stark for role of the MCU's flagship character, that gave Sony a ''lot'' of leverage in the negotiations.[[/note]] For about a month, Spidey's status in the MCU was in limbo, until a new deal was announced with a 75-25 split of profits and financing on at least one more solo film and Spidey showing up in at least one more MCU crossover. Like with Hulk above, both Spider-Man solo films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe are absent from Disney+ likely as a result of the deal. |
| 97 | *** An additional consequence of this is that Creator/TomHolland was unable to reprise his role as Spider-Man for the ''[[WesternAnimation/WhatIf2021 What If...?]]'' animated series, with producer Brad Winderbaum saying that he believes Holland's contract with Sony prevented him from appearing. This is also presumably why the Spider-Man costume used in the show is ''not'' any of the ones seen in the modern Sony/MCU productions, but rather the [[SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute similar]] [[LawyerFriendlyCameo but distinct]] design created for the Avengers Campus attraction at Disney California Adventure. |
| 98 | ** The ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2'' script by Creator/JamesGunn prominently featured Ego the Living Planet because he didn't realize at first that the character's rights were owned by Fox. How Fox got the rights to Ego is unclear, seeing as he's primarily part of Thor's RoguesGallery; it may have something to do with Ego also being a frequent opponent of the ComicBook/SilverSurfer. This a rare case in which ExecutiveMeddling actually turned out to be a good thing, as Marvel was able to receive the character rights from Fox in exchange for letting them change the powers of Negasonic Teenage Warhead in the ''Film/{{Deadpool|2016}}'' movie. |
| 99 | *** Interestingly, ''Film/{{Deadpool|2016}}'' also managed to feature a LawyerFriendlyCameo from Bob, Agent of ComicBook/{{Hydra}} by removing all referenced to the MCU-exclusive organization and set the final action scene on what is obviously a decomissioned S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier by altering the design just enough to stand out from MCU helicarriers. |
| 100 | ** Ironically, Ego was chosen in the first place because the other villains Gunn wanted to use, Annihilus and Characters/KangTheConqueror, were unavailable due to being tied up in the Fox-owned Fantastic Four movie rights [[note]]While Kang is best-known as an Avengers villain, he debuted in ''Fantastic Four'' and has been implied to be a descendant of both Reed Richards and [[Characters/MarvelComicsDoctorDoom Doctor Doom]].[[/note]]. Following the purchase of Fox by Disney, it was announced that Kang would make his MCU debut in ''Film/AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania'', with the character's He Who Remains persona getting an EarlyBirdCameo of sorts in the first season finale of ''Series/{{Loki|2021}}''. |
| 101 | ** While Creator/{{Universal}} lost the full film rights to [[ComicBook/SubMariner Namor]] in 2015, the rights situation was still complicated enough to keep him out of the MCU until 2022, when he debuted as the antagonist of ''Film/BlackPantherWakandaForever''. Despite this, producer Nate Moore later clarified that Marvel Studios still cannot make a solo film starring the character, indicating Namor is in a position similar to the Hulk. |
| 102 | ** By the final stages of ''The Infinity Saga'', the only prominent characters that still weren't back under Marvel's domain were the ''[[Film/XMenFilmSeries X-Men]]'' and ''[[Film/FantasticFour2005 The Fantastic]] [[Film/FantasticFour2015 Four]]'', both licensed to Creator/TwentiethCenturyFox. This prevented [[Film/XMenFilmSeries Wolverine]] from tangling with the Hulk, and Thor being able to fight the Thing. Finally, in December 2017, Disney outright offered to buy 20th Century Fox for $52 billion. After going through regulations to alleviate antitrust concerns, the deal was eventually finalized on March 20, 2019, meaning that Disney now had full rights to Marvel's characters and franchises, despite a breakdown with the deal with Sony that led directly to Spider-Man being exiled again for about a month before a new deal was reached. It would eventually turn out that 2022's ''Film/DoctorStrangeInTheMultiverseOfMadness'' would be the first MCU film to officially utilize the X-Men and Fantastic Four franchises, with multiversal Variants of ComicBook/ProfessorX and ComicBook/MisterFantastic appearing as part of the Illuminati. Despite this, Marvel/Disney was ''still'' bound by certain Fox-era contracts regarding casting, which is why Creator/PatrickStewart reprises his role as (a multiversal Variant of) Professor X (granted, they probably would have cast him anyway, given the Fanservice-y nature of the scene). |
| 103 | * Chapel from ''ComicBook/{{Youngblood|ImageComics}}'' did not appear in the ''Film/{{Spawn|1997}}'' movie despite his pivotal role in the comics (he was the one who killed the title character in the first place), since his film rights belonged to Creator/RobLiefeld. The character Jessica Priest was created [[{{Expy}} in his place]]. |
| 104 | [[/folder]] |
| 105 | |
| 106 | [[folder:Franchises]] |
| 107 | * ''Franchise/DoctorWhoExpandedUniverse'': |
| 108 | ** The ''Series/DoctorWho'' [[Literature/DoctorWhoNovelisations Target novelizations]] had a rule that no Doctor other than the current incumbent was allowed to be depicted on the cover. This naturally affected almost every single one of the First and Second Doctor books, with a handful of exceptions beyond the point when anyone cared any more. This also affected foreign reprints of the books, leading to many an old-school American fan confused to discover that it had actually been the ''Third'' Doctor rather than the Fourth running around fighting dinosaurs with Sarah Jane. |
| 109 | ** Up until 2015, the contract Creator/BigFinish had with the BBC stipulated that all elements of the new ''Series/DoctorWho'' series cannot be used in their ''Doctor Who'' [[AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho audio dramas]]. That didn't stop them from throwing in the occasional implied ContinuityNod and ShoutOut. For example, the framing story for the [[ADayInTheLimelight Companion Chronicle]] ''The Catalyst'' apparently takes place after the Last Great Time War from the new series, which, for legal reasons, they don't explicitly mention. And a ShoutOut to the "What the Shakespeare!" line from the series 1 episode [[Recap/DoctorWhoS27E3TheUnquietDead "The Unquiet Dead"]] appeared in ''The Kingmaker''.[[note]]Along with, ''possibly'' a background appearance by the Ninth Doctor, or just someone described as a "big eared northern chap". Nice and vague.[[/note]] As of 2015 the ban has been EX-TERMI-NATED, Big Finish being allowed to use characters introduced in TV stories all the way up to the last episode of the Doctor preceding the incumbent TV Doctor. |
| 110 | * ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'': [[VideoGame/SonicRush Eggman Nega]] [[https://bumbleking.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=38228#p38228 was declared off-limits]] to the [[ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics Archie comic]] for unknown reasons. The character was acknowledged as existing and had been referenced a handful of times, but had to be called ''Doctor'' Nega. According to writer Creator/IanFlynn, it took a lot of effort just to get permission to use that much. For similarly unknown reasons, [[VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog Black Doom]] and [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006 Mephiles the Dark]] [[https://bumbleking.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=7165&p=370440#p370440 were also off-limits]]. This is why Black Doom only appears in flashbacks and is established as already being defeated by Shadow, and is replaced with SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute Black Death as the leader of the Black Arms. Ian's attempt to bring back Mephiles was vetoed. |
| 111 | ** The Archie series in general had a strict limit on what characters they could use[[note]]anyone from the games (with a couple of exceptions), ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'', and ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM''[[/note]]. Anyone from the Japanese side of the franchise was notably off-limits, due to some messy legal situations between Sega of Japan and Sega of America. |
| 112 | ** The [[Creator/IDWPublishing IDW]] [[ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogIDW Sonic adaptation]] has similar mandates regarding video game characters who are known to be dead within the mainline continuity, which would exclude any appearances from Tikal, Chaos, Mephiles, etc. |
| 113 | ** Ian Flynn has also mentioned that using Cosmo, the Metarex or any other element from ''Anime/SonicX'' for the IDW comic was entirely out of question, citing high managerial reasons that are way beyond his power. |
| 114 | * ''Franchise/StarWars'': |
| 115 | ** Creator/GeorgeLucas placed an ExecutiveVeto on new Wookiee or Hutt Jedi in ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends''. Lowbacca, an existing Wookiee Jedi, was effectively PutOnABus because of this, and Obsidian had to scrap the plans for making Hanharr a Dark Jedi in ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublicIITheSithLords''. The ban on Wookiee Jedi would be relaxed later, as we see a Wookiee Youngling who appears in ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheBadBatch'', though it is mentioned that Wookiee Jedi are a rarity. |
| 116 | ** It's come to light that there is an extensive internal memo listing all the various species of aliens that are "banned" from Jedi-hood: Gamorreans (pig guards), Sand People (excepting Tahiri and A'Sharad Hett owing to their [[RaisedByNatives origins]]), Ewoks, Vulptereens and other as-yet unrevealed races. The principal reasoning appears to be that these species lack the "mental capacity" to become Jedi. Take that as you may. |
| 117 | ** Lucas also put a similar veto on a ''specific character'': Yoda. Authors are discouraged from exploring much, if any, of Yoda's history prior to the events of the prequel trilogy, including a more specific ban on creating an 'origin story' of sorts, showing his home planet, or giving a name to his species. This has also led to a general reticence in creating additional characters of Yoda's species. In all of canonical ''Star Wars'' material, only two other members of the species have been shown (Yaddle, a DistaffCounterpart who appears on the Jedi Council in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'' without any focus or speaking lines before being promptly PutOnABus prior to the next movie[[note]]She finally spoke in ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTalesOfTheJedi'', which also revealed her fate, as [[spoiler:Dooku had killed her between the two films]][[/note]], and Grogu, an infant from the species that appears in ''Series/TheMandalorian''). Non-canon works have only seen 3 other named members of the species in various comics and video games, where their scope of importance can be limited to the work in question. |
| 118 | ** Creator/DisneyPlus advertises including the entire ''Star Wars'' timeline on the service. What they should've specified is that it would carry the movies and the shows from the ''Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse'', as no televised production from the non-canon ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' timeline (''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'', ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsCloneWars'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Droids}}'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Ewoks}}'' and ''Film/StarWarsEwokAdventures'') was available on Disney+ at launch. Even worse, very little of said material is available on home video in sharp contrast to the ''Legends'' novels and video games, leaving fans to have to resort to [[KeepCirculatingTheTapes piracy to keep circulation going]]. |
| 119 | ** As of April 2021, ''Clone Wars'', ''Ewoks'' and the ''Ewok Adventures'' films are available to stream on Disney+, becoming the first ''Legends'' works to be added there. ''Droids'' and the Holiday Special, the latter of which [[OldShame for obvious reasons]] (though the animated Boba Fett special is available separately), remained MIA until two months later when Droids was released. |
| 120 | [[/folder]] |
| 121 | |
| 122 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 123 | * Inverted in the case of ''TabletopGame/ArsMagica'' and its MorePopularSpinoff ''TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness''. The two games are both owned by different publishers and [[DivorcedInstallment no longer in continuity]], but both contain the Order of Hermes and House/Clan Tremere. The two games are recognized as separate and the companies involved don't fight over shared concepts. |
| 124 | * From the perspective of the ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' meta-settings, the Second Cataclysm in ''TabletopGame/{{Dragonlance}}'' essentially shut Krynn off from everything; the crystal sphere of Krynnspace was no longer accessable in ''TabletopGame/{{Spelljammer}}'', it was no longer a Prime connected to the Great Wheel of ''TabletopGame/{{Planescape}}'', and even the "Wizards Three" article-stories in ''Magazine/{{Dragon}}'' had Elminster and Mordenkain wondering what happened as they'd heard no word from Dalamar (who would never appear in the articles again until they were revisited in the final issue). This is because ''Dragonlance: The Fifth Age'' was the launch title of TSR's new SAGA system; Krynn's detachment from the multiverse wasn't caused by anything as mundane as a vast war against Chaos itself, it was caused by ''Dragonlance'' simply not being a D&D setting for a while. |
| 125 | [[/folder]] |
| 126 | |
| 127 | [[folder:TV Networks and Streaming Services]] |
| 128 | * After Creator/{{Disney}} snapped up Marvel Comics, its channels ditched all content based off DC properties, while [[Creator/WarnerBros Time Warner]] did the same thing with Marvel content on ''its'' channels (with the sole exception of ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperHeroSquadShow'', which remained on Creator/CartoonNetwork for contractual reasons). Prior to this, both ''WesternAnimation/StaticShock'' and ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' had been airing in reruns on Creator/DisneyXD, while Creator/{{Boomerang}} was running both Creator/HannaBarbera[='=]s ''[[WesternAnimation/TheFantasticFour1967 Fantastic Four]]'' cartoon and ''WesternAnimation/FantasticFourWorldsGreatestHeroes'' (the former still airs on occasion internationally, though). |
| 129 | * Disney's Creator/DisneyPlus service is intended to be the exclusive home for the ''Franchise/StarWars'' franchise and the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse. However, despite featuring ''Film/{{Captain Marvel|2019}}'' and ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' at launch, several other recent movies like ''Film/{{Black Panther|2018}}'' and ''Film/ThorRagnarok'' were off-limits until 2020 due to being available on other streaming platforms when Disney+ launched. Beginning in 2022, Disney+ will get second-run streaming rights to Sony movies, including the ''Spider-Man'' franchise. As for ''Star Wars'', they ''almost'' fell into this as [[Creator/{{TNT}} Turner]] [[Creator/{{TBS}} Broadcasting]] has exclusive broadcast rights to all films up to ''Film/{{Solo}}'' until 2024, but Disney somehow managed to get the streaming rights for the films to make them available for the service's launch. |
| 130 | ** As it turns out, Turner was never an issue for the ''Star Wars'' films at all. Starz had the streaming rights to all films up to ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' under their original first-look deal with Disney prior to their Netflix deal in 2016. Disney ended up buying out their rights under the condition that Disney+ plug an advertisement for Starz for first-time users (except those who pre-registered prior to launch). |
| 131 | ** In October 2022, ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheNewAnimatedSeries'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' were added to Disney+, both under license from Sony. |
| 132 | ** Similarly, the aforementioned 60s ''[[WesternAnimation/TheFantasticFour1967 Fantastic Four]]'' cartoon and ''WesternAnimation/FredAndBarneyMeetTheThing'' are not included due to being Creator/HannaBarbera productions. This means they're two of the very few Marvel adaptations owned by [=WarnerMedia=], the company that, ironically enough, also owns DC Comics. |
| 133 | ** While ''WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution'' is on Creator/DisneyPlus in the United States, the series is on Creator/HBOMax in Latin America because Creator/WarnerBrosAnimation still owns the distribution rights. |
| 134 | ** Disney+ is also unlikely to host any productions of its characters owned by third parties, such as the Marvel movies made by other studios[[note]]except ''X-Men'' and ''The Fantastic Four'', which were already owned by Fox[[/note]], the ''Franchise/IndianaJones'' franchise,[[note]]Although Disney/Lucasfilm owns the franchise outright, Creator/{{Paramount}} still holds the distribution rights to ''Series/TheYoungIndianaJonesChronicles'' and the first four movies[[/note]], three ''[[Franchise/TheMuppets Muppet]]'' films[[note]]''Film/TheMuppetsTakeManhattan'', ''Film/MuppetsFromSpace'', ''Film/KermitsSwampYears'', all owned by Sony[[/note]], Creator/StudioGhibli (which Disney never actually owned; they only distributed their films), or ex-subisidiary Creator/MiramaxFilms. |
| 135 | * The now defunct ''DC Universe'' streaming service was supposed to include almost every media adaptation of works by Creator/DCComics. Unfortunately, the serial films ''Film/{{The Batman|Serial}}'' (not to be confused with [[Film/TheBatman2022 the 2022 film]]) and ''Film/{{Batman and Robin|Serial}}'' (not to be confused with [[Film/BatmanAndRobin another film from 1997]]) and the ''Series/Batman1966'' TV series (as well as its [[Film/BatmanTheMovie tie-in movie]]) are unlikely to be included in the service as all three adaptations are under different ownership (Sony for the first two; Disney/Creator/TwentiethCenturyFox for the third, with WB only being licensed to handle home video distribution for that one). It was because of these ownership issues that caused them to be left out of the service's free access event for ''Batman''-related media during an 80th anniversary franchise celebration. Also affected are the ''Red'' movies, ''Film/Red2010'' and ''Film/Red2'', all of which are owned by Creator/{{Lionsgate}}[=/=]Creator/SummitEntertainment, ''Film/RoadToPerdition'', co-owned between Creator/DreamWorksSKG[=/=]Creator/{{Paramount}} and Disney/Fox, and ''WesternAnimation/WildCATS1994'', owned by Creator/{{Nelvana}}. The biggest loser from this, though, is ComicBook/SwampThing, as ''all'' of his movies and shows are under different ownership[[note]]To clarify, Creator/StudioCanal and MGM own the first film, the sequel ''Return of Swamp Thing'' is owned by Lightyear Entertainment, the live-action series is owned by Creator/{{Universal}}, and the animated series is owned by Creator/WildBrain[[/note]], which may explain why WB opted to produce an original show for him on the service. |
| 136 | * ''DC Universe''[='=]s sister service Creator/HBOMax also couldn't get the '60s ''Batman'' series and the Columbia ''Batman'' serials because of the same differing ownership issues. |
| 137 | [[/folder]] |
| 138 | |
| 139 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 140 | * According to [[https://www.videogameschronicle.com/features/interviews/paper-mario-origami-king/ multiple]] [[https://www.gamesradar.com/uk/paper-mario-the-origami-king-developers-talk-origami-influences-hidden-toads-and-celebrating-super-mario/ interviews]] with the development team of ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheOrigamiKing'', it has been confirmed that there are internal branding restrictions preventing the creation of unique members of pre-existing ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' species (Toads, Goombas, etc.) and return of any such character created before the mandates, which likely implicitly explains why no elements from the ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi'' or ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' games have appeared in any mainline ''Mario'' game or other spinoffs since the early UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} era. |
| 141 | * Marvel examples from Live-Action and Animation used to apply to video games as well: |
| 142 | ** Games in the 6th-7th generations of consoles were for the most part not affected by the contracts on virtue of Creator/{{Activision}} holding the video game rights to the ''entire'' Marvel comic book universe before December 2013 as well as those to the ''Spider-Man'' and ''X-Men'' film tie-ins (and before them, there was ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom''), with one notable exception... |
| 143 | *** ...namely, Creator/{{Sierra}} had the game rights to the comic and film incarnations of the Hulk (by proxy of being owned by Vivendi, which also owned Universal Studios, which held the film rights to the character at the time), meaning that only Bruce Banner could appear in Creator/{{Activision}}'s ''VideoGame/MarvelUltimateAlliance'' (they did sneak in the Hulk's arm in the FMV preceding the final stage though); after Activision and Vivendi merged into Activision Blizzard, the Hulk was finally released as a Xbox 360 exclusive DLC character, and is an unlockable character in the sequel. This is also presumably why the Hulk was absent from the ''VideoGame/MarvelNemesisRiseOfTheImperfects'' fighting game, with his sole appearance being a LawyerFriendlyCameo where his hand was seen poking out from underneath some rubble during a cutscene. |
| 144 | ** This extends to costumes and designs as well, since Marvel comics, cartoons, and video games can usually use costume designs from Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse films, but not Marvel films made by Fox or Sony. For instance, in both ''[[VideoGame/MarvelAvengersAlliance Avengers Alliance]]'' and ''VideoGame/MarvelHeroes'', you can use Iron Man's ''Film/IronMan3'' outfit, ComicBook/CaptainAmerica and ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}'s ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'' outfits, and ComicBook/TheFalcon's ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'' outfit, but not ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}'s ''Film/XMenDaysOfFuturePast'' outfit or ComicBook/SpiderMan's ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan'' outfit. Although in ''Avengers Alliance'', Marvel did eventually come up with a licensing agreement with Sony to use Spidey's new costume from ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2''. |
| 145 | ** Namor was also removed from ''VideoGame/MarvelAvengersAlliance'' when it turned out there were legal issues, and all references to his name were replaced with an allusion to "an Atlantean". |
| 146 | ** The Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver issues seemed to extend to the video games as well. Neither character was initially present in ''VideoGame/AvengersAcademy'', with Scarlet Witch having her role in the game's ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar'' tie-in taken by ComicBook/LadySif. They were also absent from ''VideoGame/DisneyInfinity'', despite ''3.0'' having a heavy ''Civil War'' emphasis, making Scarlet Witch the only superhero from that movie who doesn't appear in the game in any form. When asked about the absence of Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, John Vignocchi implied that there are legal issues preventing the two from appearing in certain games. This seems to vary from title to title though, as both characters ''are'' playable in ''VideoGame/LEGOMarvelsAvengers''. In 2018, following a gradual thawing of relations between Disney and Fox due to the potential buyout, Scarlet Witch was finally allowed to appear in ''Avengers Academy'' as part of the ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'' tie-in. |
| 147 | ** Ike Perlmutter eventually instituted an extremely controversial embargo on characters whose movie rights were owned by other studios, preventing them from appearing in games like ''VideoGame/LEGOMarvelsAvengers'', ''VideoGame/DisneyInfinity'', ''VideoGame/AvengersAcademy'', and ''VideoGame/LEGOMarvelSuperHeroes2''. Even ''VideoGame/MarvelHeroes'', which already had Fantastic Four characters, was forced to stop selling them in 2017. Especially notable was the complete absence of any X-Men or FF characters in ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomInfinite'', despite characters like ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, [[Characters/MarvelComicsMagneto Magneto]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsStorm Storm]] and [[Characters/MarvelComicsDoctorDoom Doctor Doom]] having been longtime fan favorites in the previous ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom'' games. The embargo eventually ended around the time the Fox merger was winding down; the X-Men started appearing in mobile games in 2018 and the Fantastic Four were added to them in a promotional push in early 2019. |
| 148 | ** This even extended to ''locations'' associated with those characters. As part of the expansive open world New York featured in the 2018 ''VideoGame/SpiderManPS4'' game, players could visit landmarks associated with various heroes from across the Marvel Universe, such as [[ComicBook/IronMan Stark Tower]], [[ComicBook/BlackPanther the Wakandan embassy]], [[ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} the Nelson and Murdock law office]], [[ComicBook/DoctorStrange the Sanctum Sanctorum]] and [[ComicBook/JessicaJones Alias Investigations]]. Notably absent was the Baxter Building, the famous skyscraper headquarters of the Fantastic Four, as well as even a mention of anything pertaining to the X-Men. Also initially missing were Spider-Man's Future Foundation uniform and his Bombastic Bag-Man outfit (which is literally just a spare Fantastic Four uniform with a paper bag worn over the head), despite the massive amount of alternate costumes featured in the game. After the embargo finally ended when Disney began an official purchase of Fox, both of those outfits were added as part of a special Fantastic Four-themed DLC pack. |
| 149 | ** After months of being asked about it by fans, the makers of the 2018 ''VideoGame/SpiderManPS4'' game (which already included the suit from ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'') added the Spidey costume from Creator/SamRaimi's ''[[Film/SpiderManTrilogy Spider-Man]]'' trilogy as a free skin for the DLC ''The City That Never Sleeps''. |
| 150 | ** This was averted in the sequel, ''VideoGame/SpiderManMilesMorales'', which, in addition to various shout-outs to the members of the Avengers, features an explicit reference to ComicBook/{{Dazzler}} of the X-Men. Since the game began production after the merger was complete, the creators were presumably given the okay from Marvel to mention X-Men characters this time. |
| 151 | * Speaking of ''Marvel vs. Capcom'', Capcom created a new character named Norimaro for ''VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroesVsStreetFighter''. Due to the fact that he's co-owned by Nippon Television (as he was designed by Japanese comedian Noritake Kinashi on his TV show), as well as the rumor that Marvel absolutely ''hates'' the character, he's never appeared in any subsequent games. |
| 152 | * Supposedly, this is the reason that Marvel, Star Wars, and Fox content have yet to appear in the ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' series. Evidently, it was apparently difficult getting approval from Disney to use the [[WesternAnimation/Frozen2013 more]] [[WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}} modern]] [[WesternAnimation/BigHero6 properties]] in the game, but it was even more so to get approval from Pixar to use [[Franchise/ToyStory some]] of [[Franchise/MonstersInc their]] [[WesternAnimation/{{Ratatouille}} properties]]. Thus, it was claimed that, because Disney didn't originally create these properties, as well as the difficulties they experienced in getting the approvals they got, it was not likely to be added into the series anytime soon. That being said, there is an interest in doing so, so they may try again in the future. |
| 153 | * Creator/{{Atari}} arcade games: |
| 154 | ** The current Atari, Inc.[[note]]Formerly Infogrames[[/note]] cannot acknowledge or use anything pertaining to the post-1984 Atari arcade catalog, due to the arcade division being spun off from the original Atari (the pre-1984 arcade catalog remained with the newly-formed Atari Corporation, though). The catalog changed hands several times throughout the years before ultimately ending up with Creator/WarnerBros in 2009, following their acquisition of Creator/MidwayGames[[note]]Who in turn acquired the arcade division from Warner in 1996, renaming it Midway Games West to avoid getting in trademark trouble with Atari's then-owners Creator/{{Hasbro}}[[/note]]. This has led to a double whammy for both parties: Warner is not able to use the Atari name for future re-releases of the catalog to avoid paying trademark royalties, while Atari completely leaves out post-1984 classics like ''VideoGame/{{Paperboy}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Gauntlet}}'' from any of their compilations showcasing their expansive archive of games. |
| 155 | ** Atari can no longer include ''VideoGame/Battlezone1980'' in their arcade game collections like ''Atari Vault'' after [[Creator/{{Rebellion}} Rebellion Developments]] bought the rights to it in 2013 and used the IP to create ''VideoGame/Battlezone2016''. |
| 156 | * Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog: Until 2023, 'Classic' era supporting characters who debuted before ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'' (such as [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogTripleTrouble Fang]], [[VideoGame/SonicTheFighters Bean, Bark, and Honey]]) weren't allowed to appear in works set in the current "Modern" era of Sonic (aka, ''Adventure'' and onwards), which included the main IDW comics. This was largely due to branding, as the classic era was currently treated as a spin-off franchise separated from the core ''Sonic'' franchise. Likewise, characters who debuted in the Dreamcast-Modern era were also barred from appearing in Classic Sonic-branded media, which oddly enough, included Team Chaotix, who were considered to be "Modern" Sonic characters despite debuting in [[VideoGame/KnucklesChaotix a Sega 32X game]]. Despite this, they can still be referenced, as WebAnimation/TailsTube mentions several Classic-era characters in Episode 5, which lead to many thinking that Sega was slowly breaking the mandate or at least not enforcing it in an absolute manner. |
| 157 | [[/folder]] |
| 158 | |
| 159 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 160 | * The creators of ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales2017'' wished to include WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse, but Disney forbade them from doing so. The closest they could manage is Donald's CompanionCube melon in the Season 2 finale. |
| 161 | ** Initially, Disney also forbade them from using the main characters of ''WesternAnimation/ChipNDaleRescueRangers'' in the series proper, as they had [[Film/ChipNDaleRescueRangers2022 a revival movie]] planned for them. It became {{averted|Trope}}, however, in Season 3, when they were able to sneak them in, forcing Disney to keep them in the show. |
| 162 | * The ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'' episode "[[Recap/OKKOLetsBeHeroesS2E18CrossoverNexus Crossover Nexus]]" is jam-packed with cameos and references to many of Creator/CartoonNetwork's shows, both current and past, but there were several programs that couldn't be referenced or represented in the episode because of legal reasons and the short timeframe of the episode. |
| 163 | ** ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'', ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsCloneWars'', and ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'' are not represented in spite of being co-productions with Cartoon Network because the ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'' and ''Franchise/StarWars'' franchises belong to Creator/{{Hasbro}} and Creator/{{Disney}} respectively. |
| 164 | ** ''WesternAnimation/ClassOf3000'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretSaturdays'' had no legal barriers and were planned to have references in the episode. According to the show's creator their scenes were just cut for time. The GrandFinale "Thank You For Watching The Show" had cameos by Sunny Bridges and Zak Saturday from both those aforementioned shows to make up for it. |
| 165 | ** No Cartoon Network co-productions with Creator/WarnerBros other than ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'' are represented, despite the ''many'' series made for the network like ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueAction'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheLooneyTunesShow''. |
| 166 | ** Despite being at the core of the network for years, Creator/HannaBarbera, ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' and [[WesternAnimation/TomAndJerry MGM]] characters were all absent from the crossover outside a few references, thanks to the pre-AT&T [=TimeWarner=] discouraging much synergy between divisions, in turn making things difficult between CN and WB Animation (which has the rights to all the aforementioned characters). |
| 167 | ** References to ''WesternAnimation/SpaceGhostCoastToCoast'' and ''Creator/{{Toonami}}'' were also largely absent, thanks to those shows/blocks being retroactively considered part of Creator/AdultSwim despite starting on CN before AS' existence (and [[ThinkOfTheChildren not wanting kids to watch Adult Swim]]). No Creator/AdultSwim shows are shown due to the network treating it as its own brand (along with being unsuitable for children). There's a graffiti doodle of Clyde 49, Toonami's first mascot, and a small cameo of Ghost Planet near the end of the ep, but that's about it. Funnily, the show was still able to reference ''WesternAnimation/AquaTeenHungerForce'' and ''WesternAnimation/TwelveOunceMouse'' in later episodes. |
| 168 | ** ''WesternAnimation/{{Ninjago}}'', ''WesternAnimation/SonicBoom'', and ''WesternAnimation/MegaManFullyCharged'' are absent due to being owned by The LEGO Group, Creator/{{Sega}}, and Creator/{{Capcom}} respectively. |
| 169 | ** ''WesternAnimation/{{Mixels}}'' is classified as a Cartoon Network Original, but was left out due to LEGO owning a fraction of the franchise through the merchandise. |
| 170 | ** There are no representations of the ''WesternAnimation/TotalDrama'' franchise, presumably due to co-ownership with Creator/FreshTV. |
| 171 | ** The episode does not include representations of third-party acquired programs, such as ''WesternAnimation/TheMrMenShow'', ''The High Fructose Adventures of WebVideo/TheAnnoyingOrange'', and anime, that aired on the network at one point or another. |
| 172 | ** Series/OutOfJimmysHead is the only CN Real series to be referenced in the crossover, since most CN Real shows are now considered an OldShame for Cartoon Network. |
| 173 | ** Only three foreign CN productions are included in the crossover: ''WesternAnimation/{{Villainous|CartoonNetwork}}'', ''WesternAnimation/JorelsBrother'', and ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball''. |
| 174 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Velma}}'': Scooby-Doo is absent from the series -- making it one of [[Film/DaphneAndVelma only two]] incarnations in the entire franchise to lack the dog -- largely due to Warner Bros. executives not wanting the character to appear in the series, though the writing crew admitted that they didn't know how to work him in anyway. |
| 175 | [[/folder]] |
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