Editing Todd McFarlane (section)

==Legal issues==
McFarlane lost judgments in two lawsuits in the 2000s. The first was a 2002 suit in which McFarlane contested with writer [[Neil Gaiman]] over the rights to some supporting Spawn characters created by Gaiman in issue No. 9 of the ''Spawn'' series and over payment for later works featuring those characters. In 1997, the two signed a deal in which Gaiman would give his share of characters [[Angela (comics)|Angela]], [[Medieval Spawn]] and [[Cogliostro]] to McFarlane in exchange for McFarlane's share of British superhero [[Marvelman]] (in reality, what McFarlane owned were two trademarks for Miracleman logos, not the character, which would become clear only after the lawsuit concluded). This deal was broken by McFarlane, which motivated Gaiman to start the lawsuit. The jury was unanimous in favor of Gaiman. The two were involved in a lengthy dispute over ownership of Miracleman, but no lawsuit has been filed in that dispute. In 2009, Marvel Comics resolved the matter by purchasing the property.<ref>{{cite web|first=Kiel|last=Phegley|url=http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=22203|title=CCI: Cup O Joe|publisher=[[Comic Book Resources]]|date=July 24, 2009|access-date=January 17, 2018}}</ref> The creators settled their dispute over the ''Spawn'' characters in January 2012. The exact terms of the settlement were not disclosed,<ref>{{cite web|author=Mozzocco, J. Caleb|publisher=[[ComicsAlliance]]|title=Neil Gaiman And Todd McFarlane Settle Legal Dispute Over Co-Spawned Characters |url=https://comicsalliance.com/spawn-angela-neil-gaiman-todd-mcfarlane-ownership-settlement/|date=January 31, 2012|access-date=September 30, 2019}}</ref> though Gaiman retained ownership of Angela, as she became a character in the [[Marvel Universe]] when Gaiman began doing work for Marvel in 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbr.com/gaiman-returns-to-marvel-brings-spawns-angela/|title=Gaiman Returns to Marvel, Brings ''Spawn's'' Angela|first=Steve|last=Sunu|publisher=[[Comic Book Resources]]|date=March 21, 2013|access-date=April 20, 2019|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420031704/https://www.cbr.com/gaiman-returns-to-marvel-brings-spawns-angela/|archive-date=April 20, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2013/05/09/neil-gaiman-angela-age-of-ultron/|title=FIRST LOOK: Neil Gaiman's avenging Angela will make Marvel history|last=Boucher|first=Geoff|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|date=May 9, 2013|access-date=May 9, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171122053713/http://ew.com/article/2013/05/09/neil-gaiman-angela-age-of-ultron/|archive-date=November 22, 2017}}</ref> [[Bleeding Cool]] later confirmed that Marvel Comics had completely bought the rights to Angela from Gaiman.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bleedingcool.com/2013/06/19/marvel-owns-angela-but-no-karen-gillan-wont-be-playing-her-in-guardians-of-the-galaxy/|title=Marvel Owns Angela – But No, Karen Gillan Won't Be Playing Her In Guardians Of The Galaxy|last=Johnson|first=Rich|publisher=[[Bleeding Cool]]|date=June 19, 2013|access-date=June 19, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190307000352/https://www.bleedingcool.com/2013/06/19/marvel-owns-angela-but-no-karen-gillan-wont-be-playing-her-in-guardians-of-the-galaxy/|archive-date=March 7, 2019}}</ref>

Another suit in which McFarlane became embroiled was a December 2004 suit in which hockey player [[Tony Twist]] sued McFarlane because he named a mobster character in ''Spawn'' after Twist. After a jury initially found McFarlane liable for $24.5 million in damages (reduced to $15 million on appeal), the lawsuit was later settled out of court for $5 million.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-07-06 |title=Comic book 'twist': How Blues enforcer scored millions in court |url=https://fox2now.com/sports/st-louis-blues/comic-book-twist-how-blues-enforcer-scored-millions-in-court/ |access-date=2023-08-14 |website=FOX 2 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2006/06/19/daily18.html|title=Appeals court upholds $15M verdict for Twist|newspaper=[[St. Louis Business Journal]]|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=June 20, 2006|access-date=August 12, 2023|archive-date=July 15, 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120715223637/http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2006/06/19/daily18.html}}</ref>

In 2012, McFarlane sued his former friend and employee, Al Simmons, from whom the name of Spawn's alter ego was derived. According to a lawsuit lodged in Arizona federal court, the real Al Simmons published a book called ''The Art of Being Spawn'', in which Simmons purportedly suggests that his own life was the inspiration for the Spawn character. McFarlane's position was that Simmons violated the terms of his employment pact and breached his duty of loyalty.<ref>Gallaher, Valerie (October 1, 2012). [https://web.archive.org/web/20121005000059/http://geek-news.mtv.com/2012/10/01/todd-mcfarlane-sues-al-simmons "Todd McFarlane Sues Al Simmons"]. MTV. Retrieved January 17, 2018.</ref><ref>Gardner, Eriq (October 1, 2012). [https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/todd-mcfarlane-sues-employee-spawn-character-inspiration-375307 "Todd McFarlane Sues Ex-Employee Claiming to Be Inspiration of 'Spawn' Character"]. ''The Hollywood Reporter''. Retrieved January 17, 2018.</ref> The lawsuit was settled in December 2012 when McFarlane agreed with Simmons. The terms of any settlement were not made public.<ref name=Vulture/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bleedingcool.com/2012/12/14/todd-mcfarlane-settles-with-al-simmons-dc-try-to-get-their-costs-from-toberoff|title=Todd McFarlane Settles With Al Simmons, DC Try To Get Their Costs From Toberoff – Bleeding Cool News And Rumors|date=December 14, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/faulkner-estate-settles-adam-sandler-402090|title=Hollywood Docket: Faulkner Estate Settles; Sandler Beats 'Just Go With It' Suit; 'Superman' Appeal|magazine=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|author1=Gardner, Eriq|author2= Belloni, Matthew|date=December 13, 2012}}</ref>