Korean-American comic artist Frank Cho has sparked controversy by claiming that he was barred from working at Marvel Comics for three years at the request of former Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy, who left her position earlier this year. He stated that a Star Wars satirical drawing he created was the cause of the ban.
Cho revealed this during a recent interview on the podcast ‘The Marblist,’ hosted by Peter Melnik during New York Comic Con.
He stated, “It has been three years since I was banned from working at Marvel, and it wasn’t because of Marvel, but because of Kathleen Kennedy.” He added, “I bruised Kennedy’s ego, and she demanded that Marvel exclude me.”
The trigger pointed out by Cho is a satirical drawing he made on a ‘blank sketch cover’ of a Star Wars comic. A blank sketch cover is a special cover left blank for artists to draw directly on. Cho, who also revealed he is a Star Wars fan, explained that he drew the Star Wars satire on the cover either upon request or for sale purposes.
Cho claimed that Kennedy was furious about these drawings and demanded that Marvel not hire him again. He also mentioned that his artwork led to the cancellation of the entire blank sketch cover program for the Star Wars series.
Cho debuted the syndicated comic strip ‘Liberty Meadows’ in 1997. Afterward, he worked at Marvel on titles such as ‘Shanna the She-Devil,’ ‘Mighty Avengers,’ ‘New Avengers,’ ‘Savage Wolverine,’ and works related to Spider-Man and X-Men.
