After Rob Liefeld answered the report that Marvel is phasing its publishing over to Webtoon by 2030 with a simple “Believe it,” the Deadpool co-creator kept talking. And what he said next explains exactly why he believes it.
According to Liefeld, big entertainment is going all-in on tech, and it is all being driven by one thing: cost savings.
“These Corporations Are Bottom Line, Period”
Posting on X, Liefeld laid out what he is seeing from inside the industry (note: emphasis, our own): “Tech is where all the big corporations are moving towards. Especially entertainment. I am taking meeting after meeting and it’s all about tech and the savings it will provide. These corporations are bottom line, period. Don’t kid yourself. Meanwhile, those of us who can control our comics will choose physical media first & foremost.”
He followed it up hours later, making clear this is not slowing down: “Since I tweeted this, I had two more meetings about tech. It’s non stop.”
This Is The Motive Behind The Whole Story
This lines up with everything we have been reporting.
Our insiders described Disney restructuring around AI to streamline production, push out more content with fewer workers, and squeeze more efficiency out of the machine. Liefeld, sitting in meeting after meeting, is describing the same thing from the other side of the table.
It also explains the Marvel publishing move.
If the priority is cutting costs and chasing efficiency, an in-house publishing operation that has run since 1939 becomes a line item. Licensing the comics out or shifting them onto a digital platform like Webtoon is exactly the kind of savings these corporations are chasing.
Liefeld is not confirming the specifics of Marvel’s plan here. He is confirming the climate that makes that plan make sense.
When someone taking nonstop meetings says every big entertainment company is being driven by tech and the savings it provides, the pieces fit.
Liefeld Plants His Flag On Physical Media
While the big corporations chase digital savings, Liefeld says the creators who actually control their own comics will choose physical media first.
That is not a new position for him. Liefeld has spent the last couple of years preaching a direct-to-consumer model, telling Screen Rant at San Diego Comic-Con that selling directly through livestreams and his own site lets him ship books worldwide and give readers what they actually want.
He owns his characters, so he gets to make that call.
That is the fault line he is drawing. Corporations that answer to shareholders go digital to cut costs (just look at the Sony backlash). Independent creators who own their work keep the physical book alive. Two very different futures, splitting right down the middle of who controls the IP.
Why Liefeld’s Read Carries Weight
Liefeld is not a bystander in this. He co-created Deadpool and Cable, launched X-Force, co-founded Image Comics, and holds a royalty deal on Deadpool unique among comic creators, one that pays him whenever the character turns up onscreen, in games, or in merchandise.
He also has multiple projects in development around town, which is why he is sitting in all these meetings in the first place.
So when he says the meetings are wall to wall tech talk and the whole business is chasing savings, that is a firsthand read from someone who has spent nearly forty years watching how these companies actually operate.
For the background, read our exclusive on Disney losing interest in publishing Marvel Comics, the report that Marvel is heading to Webtoon by 2030, and how it all ties into Disney’s restructuring around AI ahead of the Paramount-WBD war.
