Posted in: Comics, Marvel Comics | Tagged: Akira Yoshida, cb cebulski, steve wacker
Steve Wacker Replaces C.B. Cebulski As Marvel Editor-In-Chief
Steve Wacker replaces C.B. Cebulski as Marvel’s new Editor-In-Chief after 9 years as C,B, Cebulski becomes Marvel’s new Asia Originals Editor
Article Summary
- CB Cebulski steps down as Marvel Editor-in-Chief after 9 years, with Steve Wacker returning to lead Marvel Comics.
- CB Cebulski moves to Tokyo as Marvel’s Asia Originals Editor, expanding manga and original graphic fiction efforts.
- Steve Wacker brings major Marvel editorial credits, from Amazing Spider-Man to Kamala Khan and It’s Jeff!.
- CB Cebulski leaves a long Marvel legacy, from Krakoa and Ultimate relaunches to Stormbreakers and DC crossovers.
Marvel Comics announced today that Stephen “Steve” Wacker has been named the new Editor-in-Chief of Marvel Comics as Marvel Comics makes the move from New York to Burbank over the next year. He will take over from C.B. Cebulski, who has been EIC at Marvel since November 2017. C.B. Cebulski will move to Japan to become Editor, Asia Originals, at Marvel in Tokyo. Yes, there will be jokes. But let’s look at this in the round.
“Few editors have had as long and accomplished a career as C.B. I’m grateful for his partnership over the past decade and thrilled that he’ll be on the ground in Japan, connecting with local artists and overseeing Marvel’s original graphic fiction and manga in the region,” said Brad Winderbaum, Head of Marvel Television, Animation, Comics & Franchise. “At the same time, I’m excited to welcome Stephen Wacker back to Marvel. He is a tremendous editor, a passionate advocate for creators, and someone who deeply understands that Marvel Comics is the source code of our entire enterprise, with a publishing resume that includes some of our most beloved modern runs.”
Steve Wacker (seriously, do I have to call him Stephen now?) is a longstanding Marvel editor and executive. He spent more than fifteen years at Marvel, seven of them as a senior editor overseeing several comic book runs, famous and infamous, including One More Day and Brand New Day and the Superior Spider-Man eras of Amazing Spider-Man, as well as very influential Daredevil, Hawkeye, and Captain Marvel series, and the introduction of Kamala Khan, Ms Marvel, of which he is credited as co-creator. More recently, after a long stint on the company’s animation side, where he co-produced the Rocket & Groot, Avengers Assemble, Ultimate Spider-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Wastelanders audio series, heedited the Marvel Infinity Comic series It’s Jeff!
Steve Wacker also worked as an editor at DC Comics, including the weekly 52 series, and, more recently, was EIC for Jonathan Hickman, Mike Huddleston, and Mike Del Mondo‘s 3W3M Substack comic book publisher. Most recently, he co-founded the entertainment studio Stone Kite and served as SVP, Media, guiding storytelling across various media.
“Picking up Marvel Two-in-One #50 as a kid is what made me a comics fan, so returning to Marvel as Editor-in-Chief is a full-circle moment that I’m still wrapping my head around,” said Wacker. “I’m proud to join Kevin, Brad, David, and this incredible staff and amazing array of talent to build on the work started by Stan, Jack, Steve, Flo, John, and so many more. I truly believe the best Marvel comics have yet to be written and drawn, and I can’t wait to get to work adding some new floors to the House of Ideas.”
C.B. Cebulski was the third-longest tenured EIC in Marvel’s history. Prior to becoming Editor-in-Chief in 2017, he established himself as one of the industry’s top talent recruiters, discovering talent from across the globe, including Skottie Young, Pepe Larraz, Marco Checchetto, and Peach Momoko, who have brought new flair to the pages of Marvel’s comics. He confessed to Bleeding Cool that he had written comic books under the pseudonym Akira Yoshida many years earlier, creating a fictitious history as a Japanese writer to evade Marvel’s then-restrictive hiring policies. and was heavily criticised for doing so, though East Asian creators at Marvel were keen to point out how much they had benefited from his hiring policies, bringing in artists from new territories that he had scouted.
C.B. Cebulski was EIC for the relaunch of the Ultimate Universe, the Krakoan Age of X-Men, and Marvel’s most comprehensive manga partnership with Shonen Jump, creating titles like Deadpool Samurai and Spider-Man: Octo-Girl. He introduced Marvel’s Stormbreakers, the premier talent program designed to spotlight the next generation of elite comic artists, as well as Marvel’s Art Atelier, the talent training program jointly run with Disneyland Paris. More recently, he directly launched the new wave of Marvel/DC crossovers with DC EIC Marie Javins.
Said C.B. Cebulski, “I’m incredibly proud of everything we’ve accomplished at Marvel Comics during my time as EIC, and I’m excited for this new role the leadership team has created for me. I’m looking forward to pursuing new opportunities across Asia while staying close to Steve and Marvel’s brilliant publishing team, who are all like family to me.” In his new role, Steve Wacker will report to Winderbaum, and Cebulski will be part of Wacker’s global leadership team. C.B. Cebulski is expected to work out of Tokyo.
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