Would Marvel have the rights to their Horror comics

[Spidey-Quad]

Dracula, Werewolf by night, Frankenstein's creature they've all been in so many different movies from different studios. If they ever got the initiative to investigate that part of their comic universe on the big screen when they have the rights to use the name Dracula & Frankenstein?

 

[R_Hythlodeus]

most of them are either public domain or Universal holds the rights, I guess

 

[Kahran Ramsus]

Most of them like Dracula, Frankenstein, etc. are in the public domain.

 

[Mike Murdock]

Yeah, Universal makes monster movies because they're in the public domain. In other words, anyone can do the same. It isn't because they own some Marvel IP. On the other hand, original characters created for a Universal movie are owned exclusively by Universal. For example, Brendan Fraser's character in the Mummy is a Universal character. Likewise, any character created for a Marvel horror comic stays with them.

 

[ernesth100]

Universal is already making a Monster Cinematic Universe from what I've heard.

 

[Orba]

Its like with Thor, the classic norse god Thor is owned by no-one so anyone can make a Thor film, but any of the changes Marvel did to the character in thier comics are owned by Marvel. So anyone can make a Thor film but only Marvel can make a film of the Marvel Thor.

 

[Mike Murdock]

Universal is already making a Monster Cinematic Universe from what I've heard.

Yep. But the point is, for characters in the public domain, so can everyone else.

 

[Wildcard]

^ Exactly. Everyone in this thread could make stories pertaining to public domain characters simultaneously & as long as the concepts are different there's nothing that can be done about it.

As for the question at hand, Marvel (or any other company) would have the rights to make a movie about any property they haven't signed off to another studio. If no deal was made with some other company pertaining to the rights to a film/franchise, they are free to adapt any properties they want.

 

[Hellion]

That gets me to thinking, whatever happened to the Werewolf By Night film...I remember one was announced way back in 2005, but nothing else ever seemed to materialize, I remember back then it seemed like so many obscure (at least to me) Marvel characters or properties were announced on/for film...like Mort the Dead Teenager, Killraven, and a few others...I always wondered what happened...

 

[Eddie]

It simply never happened, like Namor, Luke Cage, etc. AFAIK, that one never even came close to happening. The closest thing to Werewolf By Night we ever got in live action was a mention of Marc Spector (Moon Knight) knowing more about werewolves in a line from that Blade series.

 

[KevanG]

Well as long as Universal didn't try to sue them over using King Kong like they did for Donkey Kong and Nintendo. Public domain suckas!