Marvel Comics Is Leaving New York for Burbank After Nearly 90 Years
Marvel told staff at a New York town hall that its comics publishing division is relocating to Burbank, California, moving just over 100 employees by July 2027. The move lands alongside Stephen Wacker replacing C.B. Cebulski as Editor-in-Chief, and leaves New York City without a major comic publisher.
Marvel Comics is leaving New York City. Staff learned at a Thursday town hall in Marvel's Midtown office that the publishing division is relocating to Burbank, California, the home of Marvel Studios and The Walt Disney Company, with just over 100 employees asked to move by July 2027.
Key Details
- Moving: Marvel's Comics and Franchise division, from Midtown Manhattan to Burbank, California
- Who: Just over 100 New York based employees, with orientation sessions starting next week
- Timeline: Relocation by July 2027, a transition running about 12 months
- Leadership: Stephen Wacker named Editor-in-Chief, replacing C.B. Cebulski, who becomes Editor, Asia Originals in Japan
- Trigger: The Avenue of the Americas office lease expires next year
The Hollywood Reporter first reported the move and obtained the companywide letter sent after the town hall.
Why Burbank, and why now
Two things drove the decision, which had been months in the making. The practical one: the current New York office lease on Avenue of the Americas expires next year, forcing a call. The strategic one: Marvel wanted to put all of its businesses in one city for the first time since before Disney bought the company in 2009.
When new Marvel Comics leadership came on in May, they began meeting with New York staff to test whether that consolidation was feasible, including an audit of where comic creators actually live. The answer reframed the question. The creator community is global now, and among U.S.-based creators, more are in California than in New York.
Presiding over the town hall were Marvel chief Kevin Feige, head of television, animation, comics and franchise Brad Winderbaum, and David Abdo, newly installed as general manager, comics and franchise.
"This move will position the team beside our broader creative organization and create opportunities for collaboration across both Marvel and Disney. Bringing our comics, film, television, and other creative teams together will help us learn from one another, collaborate, and build on the strengths that make Marvel the true House of Ideas." Brad Winderbaum and David Abdo, in a letter to staff
What New York meant to Marvel
New York City is where the American comic book industry was born, and Marvel's earlier incarnations, Timely Comics and Atlas Comics, were headquartered on 42nd Street. It is where most of the classic creators lived, including Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Steve Ditko. It is also where the characters live: the Fantastic Four in the Baxter Building, the Avengers in Manhattan, and Spider-Man swinging through Queens and Midtown as the most New York hero Marvel has.
The departure also empties the city of major comic publishers entirely. DC left for Warner Bros.' Burbank campus in 2015.
Marvel's leadership acknowledged the weight of it. "New York has played a huge part in who Marvel is as a company, and in the pages of our comics," Winderbaum and Abdo wrote. "While our network of writers and artists is now an international operation, New York is still woven into our DNA and that will never change. Our colleagues in New York have helped shape generations of stories and characters, and their contributions to Marvel's legacy cannot be overstated."
Employees are being asked, not ordered, to follow. "We sincerely hope they choose to continue that journey with us in California," the letter said. "We are committed to supporting every affected employee throughout this transition, which will take place over the next 12 months." Orientation sessions for affected employees and their families start next week.
The leadership change riding alongside it
Stephen Wacker takes over as Editor-in-Chief, returning to Marvel after leaving in the early 2020s to lead Jonathan Hickman's worldbuilding project 3W3M and co-found the studio Stone Kite. He spent more than fifteen years at Marvel and oversaw Amazing Spider-Man runs including the best-selling "Brand New Day" and "Superior Spider-Man" eras. He edited Daredevil and Hawkeye when those titles won Eisner Awards, and was involved in introducing Kamala Khan as Ms. Marvel. He also co-produced the Emmy-nominated Rocket & Groot shorts in 2017 and executive produced the Wastelanders audio series.
Cebulski leaves as the third longest tenured EIC in Marvel's nearly 90-year history. He oversaw the Ultimate Universe relaunch and was involved in the "Krakoan Age" of X-Men books, and his ties to Japan produced the Shonen Jump manga partnership behind Deadpool Samurai and Spider-Man: Octo-Girl. That background is what his new Asia Originals role builds on. Wacker will report to Winderbaum, and Cebulski joins Wacker's global leadership team.
Why this matters for readers
Both moves point the same direction. Marvel's comics line lost its market share lead for the first time this century after years of being overshadowed by the films, and Feige's answer is to install new leadership and put the publishing team in the same building as the movie and TV divisions. Whether that produces better comics or just better-coordinated ones is the open question. The near-term cost is concrete: a New York staff of over 100 has twelve months to decide whether to move across the country, and the industry's founding city loses its last major publisher.