He invented superheroes such as Spider-Man, Ironman and Black Panther and ultimately became a pop culture icon himself: Stan Lee, comic book author and mastermind of the Marvel universe, died on Monday at the age of 95.
"Stan Lee was as special as the characters he created. As a superhero for comic fans around the world, Stan had the ability to inspire, entertain and combine," said Bob Iger, CEO of the Walt Disney Company, about the deceased. Disney bought Marvel Entertainment in 2009 for more than $ 4 billion – a prize that mostly refers to values that Stan Lee created with his characters.
Despite the decades-long popularity of Lee's characters, most of which emerged in the '50s and '60s, it wasn't until the 21st century that Spider-Man and Co. were truly "gilded." The success of the first Spider-Man film with real actors in 2002 triggered a wave of superhero films that broke record after record and brought billions into the box office. The following infographic shows which of Lee's characters achieved the greatest success on screen.