Comic book creators seek to avenge alleged stolen ideas

A Montreal-based comic book company is suing Marvel Entertainment and Disney for allegedly and repeatedly ripping off the heroes of its “Iron Man,” “Ant-man” and “Avengers” series, according to CTV News in Canada.

Horizon Comics and its founders allege that Marvel used their designs without consent or compensation, and are suing for damages and an injunction “to put an end to this deliberate and persistent infringement,” the suit reads.

The suit says Marvel’s now-Editor in Chief C.B. Cebulski approached Horizon’s founders to work as artists for Marvel based on the popular series, but they declined the offer. Yet, among a number of issues with other characters, the founders saw similarities between the armored costume worn by Robert Downey Jr. and their design in Marvel’s third “Iron Man” movie, released in 2013.

Marvel’s “repeat infringement” follows “years of litigation in the U.S. and substantial sums” and the company allegedly continues “to copy our characters. It's causing us significant damage and impacting our ability to make a living as artists. It is clear that we cannot accept this repeated behavior. The only way to make things right was to file these proceedings,” the suit states.