Avi Arad (/ˈɑːvi ˈɑːrɑːd/; Hebrew: אבי ארד; born August 1, 1948[1][2]) is an Israeli-American studio executive and producer of film, television and animation. He became the CEO of Toy Biz in the 1990s, was the chief creative officer of Marvel Entertainment and is the founder, former chairman and former CEO of the latter's successor, Marvel Studios.[3] Since then, he has produced and sometimes written a wide array of live-action, animated, and television comic book adaptations, including Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
Avi Arad | |
|---|---|
 Arad at the 2013 San Diego Comic-Con | |
| Born | August 1, 1948 Ramat Gan, Israel |
| Nationality |
|
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Spouse | Joyce Arad |
| Children | 3 |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  Israel |
| Service | Israel Defense Forces |
| Years of service | 1965–1968 |
| Battles / wars | Six-Day War (WIA) |
Early life
editArad was born in 1948 in Ramat Gan, Israel, to a Jewish family. The son of Holocaust survivors from Poland, he grew up reading Superman and Spider-Man comics translated into Hebrew.[4] In 1965, he was conscripted as a soldier into the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). He fought and was wounded in the 1967 Six-Day War, and spent 15 days recuperating. Arad finished his military service in 1968.[4]
In 1970, Arad moved to the United States and enrolled at Hofstra University to study industrial management. He worked as a truck driver and as a Hebrew teacher to put himself through college, and graduated with a BBA in 1972.[4][5]
Career
editMarvel Comics
editAlong with Israeli-American Toy Biz co-owner Isaac Perlmutter, Avi Arad came into conflict with Carl Icahn and Ron Perelman over control of Marvel Comics in the wake of its 1996 bankruptcy. In the end, Arad and Perlmutter came out on top, with Toy Biz taking over Marvel Comics in a complicated deal that included obtaining the rights to Spider-Man and other superheroes that Marvel had sold earlier. He was involved in Marvel's emergence from bankruptcy and the expansion of the company's profile through licensing and movies.
Arad Productions
edit
On May 31, 2006, Arad resigned his various Marvel positions, including his leadership of Marvel Studios, to form his own production company, Arad Productions (also known as Arad Animation), a company that primarily produces Marvel-licensed films separate from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.[3] His first non-Marvel film was 2007's Bratz. Further ventures include manga adaptation Ghost in the Shell; an adaptation of Brandon Mull's teenage fantasy Fablehaven (which died in production); an adaptation of James Patterson's teenage novel Maximum Ride; and adaptations of video game properties Uncharted,[6] Infamous,[7] Metal Gear Solid,[8] and The Legend of Zelda.[9]
Production I.G
editIn August 2010, it was announced that Arad was given a chair with the American branch of animation studio Production I.G in Los Angeles, California.[10]
Filmography
editFeature films
editDirect-to-video
edit| Year | Title | Executive Producer |
Writer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Ultimate Avengers: The Movie | Yes | No |
| Ultimate Avengers 2: Rise of the Panther | Yes | No | |
| 2007 | The Invincible Iron Man | Yes | Story |
| Doctor Strange: The Sorcerer Supreme | Yes | No |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Executive Producer |
Creator | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | King Arthur and the Knights of Justice | Yes | No | |
| 1993–1994 | Double Dragon | Yes | No | |
| 1993 | The Bots Master | Yes | No | |
| 1993–1997 | X-Men: The Animated Series | Yes | No | |
| 1994 | Iron Man | Yes | No | |
| Fantastic Four | Yes | No | ||
| 1994–1995 | Spider-Man | Yes | No | Also story writer of episode "The Alien Costume, Part 1" |
| 1996–1997 | The Incredible Hulk | Yes | No | |
| 1996 | Generation X | Yes | No | TV pilot |
| 1998 | Silver Surfer | Yes | No | |
| Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. | Yes | No | TV movie | |
| 1999–2001 | Spider-Man Unlimited | Yes | Developer | |
| 1999–2000 | The Avengers: United They Stand | Yes | No | |
| 2000–2003 | X-Men: Evolution | Yes | No | Also story writer of episode "Strategy X" |
| 2001–2004 | Mutant X | Yes | Yes | |
| 2003 | Spider-Man: The New Animated Series | Yes | No | |
| 2006 | Blade: The Series | Yes | No | |
| Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes | Yes | No | Also story writer of episode "Molehattan" | |
| 2008 | Iron Man: Armored Adventures | Yes | No | |
| The Spectacular Spider-Man | Yes | No | Episode "Survival of the Fittest" | |
| 2009 | Wolverine and the X-Men | Yes | No | |
| 2013 | Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures | Yes | Developer | |
| 2016–2018 | Kong: King of the Apes | Yes | Developer | |
| 2017–2018 | Tarzan and Jane | Yes | Developer | |
| 2017–2018 | Super Monsters | Yes | Yes | |
| 2024 | X-Men '97 | Consulting | No |
References
edit- ^ Hoffman, Jordan (June 13, 2012). "Is Spider-Man Jewish?". Times of Israel. Archived from the original on January 14, 2018. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
Avi Arad, born in Ramat Gan in 1948, founded and led Marvel Studios and recently produced for that studio the megasmash "The Avengers."
- ^ "Avi Arad News & Biography - Empire". Empire Online. Archived from the original on June 20, 2022.
- ^ a b "Marvel Announces New Independent Producer Deal with Avi Arad" Archived August 24, 2006, at the Wayback Machine, May 31, 2006 press release, via Ain't It Cool News
- ^ a b c Bowles, Scott (May 6, 2003). "Marvel's chief: A force outside, 'a kid inside'". USA Today. Los Angeles: Gannett Co. Inc. Archived from the original on March 4, 2014. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
Arad grew up on Superman and Spider-Man comics translated into Hebrew.
- ^ "Hofstra University: Frank G. Zarb School of Business – Faces of Success: Avi Arad '72". Archived from the original on May 17, 2008.
- ^ Hennig, Amy (June 30, 2009). "Uncharted 2 Live Chat with Naughty Dog". The PlayStation Blog. Sony Computer Entertainment America. Retrieved July 30, 2009.
We're really excited about the development of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune as a movie -- we've been working with Arad Productions for the last year-and-a-half or so
- ^ Fernandez, Jay A. (July 28, 2009). "Scribe takes on 'inFAMOUS'". The Hollywood Reporter. Nielsen Business Media. Archived from the original on January 9, 2010. Retrieved July 30, 2009.
Avi Arad and Ari Arad will produce.
- ^ Wales, George (August 30, 2012). "'Metal Gear Solid' movie confirmed". Total Film. Future Publishing Limited. Archived from the original on September 2, 2012. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
- ^ Goslin, Austen (November 7, 2023). "Nintendo is making a live-action Legend of Zelda movie with Sony". Polygon.
- ^ "Spider-Man Producer Avi Arad Becomes I.G. USA Chair". Anime News Network. Anime News Network. August 25, 2010. Archived from the original on August 27, 2010. Retrieved August 30, 2010.