The recent years haven’t been exactly great for the MCU, as apart from a few exceptions, including Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, most of their releases have opened to underwhelming reception. But before Marvel took a nosedive with Phase 4, industry giants, including Martin Scorsese, offered his criticism towards these superhero flicks, which weren’t received well by the fandom at the time.
However, Jon Favreau, the man behind Iron Man and The Mandalorian, came forward to address the legendary filmmakers’ viewpoints, stating they have the right to express their opinions.
Jon Favreau Spoke in Support of Martin Scorsese Amidst Fan Backlash
The production of Iron Man is a story in itself, as against overwhelming odds, Favreou and the crew succeeded in perfecting MCU’s beginning, making Iron Man a household name. While the MCU has come a long way since then, becoming the most successful movie IP of all time, in recent years, auteurs have come forward to discuss their issues with Marvel’s dominance. These auteurs, involved huge names, including Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese, who likened MCU films to theme parks.
Unsurprisingly, these comments resulted in the legendary filmmakers receiving major backlash from the Marvel fandom at the time, however, Jon Favreau came forward to defend their statements. Considering Scorsese and Coppola are behind some of the most influential films of all time and are major inspirations to Favreau, the director expressed that he wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them. He told CNBC:
“These two guys are my heroes, and they have earned the right to express their opinions. I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing if they didn’t carve the way. They served as a source of inspiration, you can go all the way back to [Favreau’s breakthrough film] Swingers.”
Similar to Jon Favreau, Oppenheimer Star Robert Downy Jr. explained that he was not offended by Scorsese’s criticism of the MCU, stating that he appreciates the director’s perspective.
Another Marvel Star Defended Martin Scorsese’s Critique on MCU
Jon Favreau and Robert Downey Jr. aren’t the lone MCU figures, who came forward to defend the Killers of the Flower Moon director’s critique on Marvel. While expressing his love for Scorsese’s films, the Eternals star Kumail Nanjiani explained the hate against the director is strange to him. He told Esquire:
“If Scorsese hasn’t earned the right to have an opinion on movies, then none of us should have an opinion on movies. It’s so strange that people get upset about it.”
But despite receiving significant backlash at the time, many fans have come to see eye to eye with the Taxi Driver director’s viewpoint on the oversaturation of superhero media in recent years.
