Marvel Studios promises it will never try to recreate Stan Lee's iconic cameos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Speaking to Miami Latin News, Marvel Studios Executive Vice President of Production Victoria Alonso promised the MCU will "never try to replace" Lee. Doubling down on the iconic nature of Lee's cameos, Alonso reiterated, "Stan Lee is not replaceable. So we will never try."
From 2008's Iron Man right through to 2019's Avengers: Endgame, eagle-eyed fans could always spot Lee in a cameo capacity. Playing everything from a Hugh Hefner lookalike to an intergalactic barber to a FedEx delivery man, there was even a theory all his cameos were connected as the same person. Sadly, Lee's death in 2018 marked the end of an era.
When asked what's next, Alonso said there will continue to be some notable cameos as the franchise enters Phase Four and beyond. "That is the legend, the man, we will never try to replace him," she said. "Other people will come around, and then you have someone as phenomenally creative as [Marvel Studios President] Kevin Feige, but there’s only one Stan Lee."
In the past, the likes of Matt Damon, Lou Ferrigno and most of the Community cast have popped up when least expected. However, while the MCU is known for its well-hidden Easter eggs, it was always a highlight of the series to spot a fleeting glimpse of Lee. It's also important to note Lee's cameos weren't just confined to the MCU. He regularly popped up in other Marvel properties like Spider-Man, X-Men and The Fantastic Four. In fact, Lee's cameos actually stretch all the way back to 1989's The Trial of the Incredible Hulk.
Although Lee was a huge fan of Spider-Man -- and repeatedly cited the masked hero as his favorite co-creation -- he sadly didn't appear in 2019's Spider-Man: Far From Home. This makes the supersized Endgame his final cameo when Lee appeared as a digitally de-aged version of himself shouting, "Hey man, make love, not war!" Still, even if Endgame marks the end of the road for the MCU tradition, it sounds like there are plenty more surprise cameos on the way.