Spider-Man is one of the most popular superheroes of all time. The awkward, loner, and somewhat introverted web-slinger is also one of the most relatable characters in comics. While he continues to surprise and inspire fans with his time in live-action films and iconic comic book characters, the character’s behind-the-scenes origin story is a mess and a nasty tale.
While in the comics the character is bitten by a spider and thus gains superpowers, in reality his origins were more of a tug-of-war between Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. After the issue of rights was only resolved last year, an old interview with Lee resurfaced on the Internet in which the celebrated comic book author clarified who really created the character.
Stan Lee on developing Spider-Man together with Steve Ditko
Steve Ditko is considered a revolutionary in comics and comic art during his lifetime and later. During his modest, quiet life as a comic artist in New York City, Ditko rarely spoke about his work, gave extensive interviews, or cleared up the many controversies and speculations surrounding him.
Much of this speculation has centered around his connection to the famous Marvel character Spider-Man. Many, including Ditko, believe he is the “co-creator” of the character, and many felt he was never actually credited as a writer, simply because he “brought” Stan Lee’s ideas to life.
While many of the works about his life later describe how essential and important Ditko was in making Spider-Man a popular and likable character among fans (see Rolling Stone, Robin Snyder’s History of Comics #5) Stan Lee seems to have disagreed.
Recently a clip from In Search of Steve Ditkoresurfaced on the Internet and contained an interview with Lee in which he stated:
I think the person with the idea is the person who executes it. And he said, “No, because I drew it.” Anyway, Steve definitely felt like he was a co-creator of Spider-Man… After he said that… I said that was fine with me.
According to Lee, Ditko was still not satisfied, so Lee sent him a letter, addressed to anyone he cared about, explaining that he considered the comic book artist a co-creator of the webslinger.
I sent it to him… And I found out that Steve still objected to it because he thought I had used the word “considered”… that wasn’t clear enough. So at that point I gave up.
When asked if he would now consider him a co-creator, Lee did not answer yes, but added:I am ready to say that‘. His answer seems to be correct from his point of view, but not all fans agree. When his comments went viral, it sparked another debate within the Marvel fan community: “Who really created Spider-Man?” (see Instagram}.
The million dollar question: Who really created Spider-Man?
The question “Who created Spider-Man?” is perhaps the most controversial and contentious of all time. This question is not only debated between Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, but also involves Ditko’s mentor and frequent collaborator of Lee, Jack Kirby. Originally, it was Kirby who drew the character, but since his version did not fit Lee, Lee later collaborated with Ditko.
This further confounded the already murky story, making it a complex question with no obvious answer unless we adhere to one view or the other of what “creator” really means. Marvel Comics had used a controversial method of creating comics at the time, commonly known as the “Marvel Method.”
Instead of the writers being given a full script, a paragraph or brief idea of the issue was given to the artists. Those artists were then responsible for drawing the entire issue, including pacing, small details, and plot points, while the “creators” or “writers” just filled in the dialogue and narration.
From this perspective (as Ditko did), it would not be wrong to consider the artists as “co-creators” as well. While Kirby famously addressed this issue publicly, Ditko preferred to take a private route (see IGN). Although he later attempted to diffuse such controversies in “essays,” the question remains, as Marvel fans are still widely divided.
While Spider-Man is one of many beloved characters that Steve Ditko “co-created,” there is an even darker and more murky subject behind the scenes, namely the origins of other characters that Ditko was involved with (see The Smart Set). With both of Spider-Man’s “co-creators” deceased, there is no denying that both were crucial to the character, even if the extent of their “contribution” to the “creation” of the character remains shrouded in mystery.
