Namor Movie Rights Explained: What Marvel Can (& Can’t) Do In MCU’s Future

Movie rights to Namor the Sub-Mariner has long been described as a complex situation, and though Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige and others at Marvel have commented on the matter in the past, exactly what Marvel can and can’t do with one of its oldest heroes has never been explicitly stated. Fans of the character remain hopeful that the Avenging Son will eventually have a place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

At this point, Namor is arguably the most important character from Marvel Comics never to be represented on the big or small screen. In fact, he would have been one of the first superheroes to have his own TV show, since a Namor the Sub-Mariner TV series was in development for a brief time in the 1950s. Since then, there have been other attempts to bring Namor to life, but none have made it very far. As Namor was one of several characters whose rights were sold to other studios, it appeared that the only way for a Namor movie to ever move forward was with Universal, but this never happened.

If Namor does appear in live-action, it will now have to be with Marvel Studios. Here’s what you need to know about Namor’s movie rights, and what kind of role the original Marvel anti-hero can have in the future of the MCU.

Who Owns Namor’s Movie Rights: Marvel or Universal?

Movie rights to Namor did belong to Universal, who acquired them in the 1990s. As of 2013, this was still the case, but in 2014, Kevin Feige offered an update on Namor when he said that Marvel, and not Universal, owned the rights to Namor; however, Feige also claimed that “entanglements” and “older contracts” prevented them from moving forward on a Namor film.

These comments indicated that the problem stemmed from distribution rights, which were still with Universal. In 2016, Marvel’s Chief Creative Officer Joe Quesada reiterated that Namor is back with Marvel. But what of the distribution rights? In 2018, Feige admitted that the situation with Namor was still “complicated“, which suggests that at this time, Marvel still didn’t have complete control over the property.

Namor Has Been Referenced In The MCU

Marvel Studios isn’t using Namor — yet — but there have been a few instances of movies in the MCU seemingly hinting at his existence, or at least the existence of his underwater kingdom, Atlantis. A map in Iron Man 2 featured a marker on the Atlantic Ocean, which is generally where the mythical city is thought to be located. In Captain America: Winter Soldier, a ship called the Lemurian Star was briefly mentioned. Connected to the Deviants, Lemuria was an underwater continent whose people often had conflict with Namor and Atlantis.

The most noteworthy reference came in Avengers: Endgame, though whether or not it’s actually about Namor has been disputed. When Okoye (Danai Gurira) makes a comment about underwater earthquakes near the coast of Africa, Black Widow (Scarlet Johansson) asks how Wakanda is responding. Okoye replies, “It’s an earthquake under the ocean. We handle it by not handling it“. Avengers: Endgame writers seemingly debunked the Namor theory in a later interview, but fan still believe the exchange about the underwater earthquakes had to have some significance in order for it to make it into the movie. Either way, it seems that these Namor references are purposely vague. They don’t confirm Namor’s existence, but can provide setup for a later appearance — if the possibility of an MCU debut from Namor ever does occur.

Can Marvel Use Namor In A Solo Movie?

Namor the Sub-Mariner is typically high on the list of movies fans want to see from Marvel Studios. As an anti-hero, Namor would be an interesting addition to the MCU, even though DC beat Marvel to making a movie about an aquatic hero. But while Aquaman is unlikely to stand in the way of a solo Namor movie, Universal could still be an obstacle, and it all boils down to distribution rights.

If Universal stills holds distribution rights to Namor, there may be no Namor the Sub-Mariner film in the MCU anytime soon. His situation could be similar to the problem with the Hulk, if the deal between Marvel and Universal regarding Namor is the same as the Hulk deal. Hulk is in the MCU, but because the distribution rights belong to Universal, Marvel can’t make a solo Hulk movie, which is why Hulk is limited to supporting roles in The Avengers movies and Thor: Ragnarok. There is no clear answer about the possibility of a Namor movie. The situation was described as “complicated” in 2018, but it’s now 2020. Whether or not the issues with Namor are ongoing remains to be seen.

Can Marvel Use Namor In a Different Movie?

What if Namor the Sub-Mariner is indeed off the table, or, Marvel simply doesn’t have any plans to give him his own movie? Either way, it is possible that Marvel may still make use of the aquatic character. The comic books are a perfect indication of how Namor can be utilized. Decades of comic books have proven that Namor is more than capable of headlining his own comic series, but this is far from the only way he can be used effectively. Namor has also been a villain and an anti-hero. He’s served as a member of the Avengers, the Defenders, and the X-Men, so Namor is no stranger to villainous or supporting roles.

Since Marvel has said they own the rights to Namor, it seems likely that even if Marvel can’t make Namor the Sub-Mariner, they can still include him in the MCU. Namor is heavily rumored to be the villain of Black Panther 2, which would make sense, considering the deep animosity shared between Namor and Black Panther in the comics and the troubled history between their respective kingdoms. Namor, a longtime ally of Doctor Strange, is also one of numerous characters rumored for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. A since deleted tweet from Scott Derrickson (who at the time was Doctor Strange 2‘s director) seemingly teased his inclusion, and there’s good reason to suspect Namor is Doctor Strange 2‘s mystery guest character. In any case, the sheer size of the MCU and the number of projects in development over just the next three years leaves plenty of avenues open for the Avenging Son to finally join the MCU.

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