The comic industry is in bigger trouble than it’s letting on, and there are changes on the horizon at Marvel Comics and DC Comics.
Dan Buckley joined Marvel Comics in 2001 and spent the next 25 years running its publishing operation, serving as Publisher and President through the MCU’s entire rise from Iron Man to Endgame. Andy Park joined Marvel’s visual development team in 2009 and spent 17 years designing the look of MCU characters, his work shaped how Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, and dozens of others appeared on screen for a generation of moviegoers. Both men are gone from Marvel in 2026. Buckley was pushed out in April as part of a broader Disney restructuring. Park was eliminated alongside the entire visual development team in the same wave.
Those two departures are the most visible part of a pattern that has been building for months. The signs have been visible for anyone watching closely. The entire visual development team eliminated in a single wave. A TV executive and a Disney Music Group operator installed to run a publishing operation that neither has ever worked in. New Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro describing the layoffs as building “a more agile and technologically-enabled workforce.” Cosmic Book News reporting that Disney insiders describe the company as “less interested in publishing” and eyeing a licensing arrangement rather than continuing to produce Marvel Comics in-house.
The trade press has been dancing around the destination. Fandom Pulse has now gotten word from an industry insider about exactly where Marvel Comics is going and when, and it’s not looking pretty for the current industry setup.
