Marvel Comics Leaving New York for Burbank as Stephen Wacker Named Editor-in-Chief

For nearly nine decades, Marvel Comics has called New York City home, the birthplace of Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, and countless other iconic heroes. Now, in one of the biggest shifts in the publisher's history, Marvel is preparing to leave the city behind.

What’s Happening:

According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Walt Disney Company has announced that Marvel Comics' publishing division will relocate from Midtown Manhattan to Burbank, California, where it will join Marvel Studios and Disney's broader creative operations. Alongside the move comes a major leadership shakeup, with longtime Marvel editor Stephen Wacker returning to become the company's new Editor-in-Chief while current Editor-in-Chief C.B. Cebulski transitions into a new global role focused on expanding Marvel's manga and Asia-based publishing initiatives.
The decision marks the end of an era for one of the comic book industry's most influential publishers.
Marvel employees learned of the changes during a company town hall led by Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, Marvel's Head of Television, Animation, Comics & Franchise Brad Winderbaum, and newly appointed General Manager of Comics & Franchise David Abdo. Shortly afterward, a company-wide memo outlined the vision behind the move.
According to Marvel leadership, relocating the publishing division to Burbank will place comic creators alongside Disney's broader creative teams, creating new opportunities for collaboration across comics, film, television, animation, and franchise development.
"Our goal is simple: to continue to make the best comic books in the business," Winderbaum and Abdo wrote. "Bringing our comics, film, television, and other creative teams together will help us learn from one another, collaborate, and build on the strengths that make Marvel the true House of Ideas."
The move has reportedly been under consideration for months. Marvel's current lease at its Avenue of the Americas headquarters expires next year, providing an opportunity to consolidate operations into a single location for the first time since Disney acquired Marvel in 2009.
Marvel also noted that today's comic book creators are far more geographically dispersed than in previous decades. While New York was once the center of the comics industry, the company found that many of its U.S.-based creators now live in California, with artists and writers spread across the globe.
Even so, Marvel emphasized that New York will remain central to the identity of its stories.
"New York has played a huge part in who Marvel is as a company, and in the pages of our comics," the memo stated. "While our network of writers and artists is now an international operation, New York is still woven into our DNA and that will never change."
Marvel is asking just over 100 New York-based employees in its Comics and Franchise division to relocate to California by July 2027. The company says orientation sessions and relocation assistance will begin in the coming weeks.
The relocation is accompanied by a major leadership transition.
Stephen Wacker, a highly respected editor with more than 15 years of Marvel experience, has been named Marvel Comics' new Editor-in-Chief. Wacker previously oversaw some of Marvel's most acclaimed modern comic runs, including Brand New Day and Superior Spider-Man, while also editing Eisner Award-winning runs of Daredevil and Hawkeye. He also helped introduce Kamala Khan, better known as Ms. Marvel, to readers.
Beyond publishing, Wacker has worked extensively across Marvel's animation and digital media projects, including co-producing the Emmy-nominated Rocket & Groot animated series and executive producing Marvel's successful Wastelanders audio dramas.
Marvel leadership described Wacker as someone who understands that "Marvel Comics is the source code of our entire enterprise."
Meanwhile, C.B. Cebulski will remain with Marvel in a newly created role based in Japan, where he will oversee APAC-originated graphic fiction and manga as Editor, Asia Originals.
Cebulski served as Editor-in-Chief since 2017 and leaves behind a significant legacy that includes the relaunch of Marvel's Ultimate Universe, the acclaimed Krakoan era of the X-Men, and partnerships with Japanese publishers that produced titles such as Deadpool Samurai and Spider-Man: Octo-Girl.
Marvel says the new role reflects both Cebulski's long-standing passion for manga and the company's continued investment in expanding its global publishing presence.
The relocation also represents a symbolic turning point for the comic book industry itself.
Marvel's earliest predecessors, Timely Comics and Atlas Comics, were founded in New York, where industry legends like Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, and countless others helped create the Marvel Universe. Many of Marvel's most recognizable heroes are also intrinsically tied to New York, from Spider-Man swinging through Manhattan to the Fantastic Four's Baxter Building and the Avengers' iconic headquarters.
With Marvel's departure, New York will no longer house either of the industry's two biggest publishers. Rival DC Comics relocated to Burbank in 2015, leaving California as the home base for both comic book giants.
Marvel leadership acknowledged the emotional weight of the move while emphasizing that its creative mission remains unchanged.
The company says its goal is to strengthen the connection between the comic books that inspired generations of fans and the films, television series, animation, and experiences they continue to influence across the Marvel universe.
For a company approaching its 90th anniversary, the move signals not only the end of one historic chapter but the beginning of another centered on bringing every part of Marvel's storytelling operation under one roof.

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Marvel Comics to Leave New York After Nearly 90 Years, Relocating Publishing Division to Disney's Burbank Headquarters

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