How a new Stan Lee documentary is causing controversy

Stan Lee was a master storyteller and mythmaker who inspired countless people. Sadly, one of the myths he helped create was that of his last years. While his cameos in the MCU created the image of a beloved creator and raconteur, Stan was appearing at conventions practically up until his death at age 95, in November of 2018. While con goers were excited to see and hear the legend, behind the scenes, accusations of elder abuse were flying, and Stan’s last years were an ugly battle between handlers, one of whom, Keya Morgan, was actually sued for elder abuse after Lee’s death.  

Now a new documentary is being crowdfunded that will reportedly show the sad state of Stan’s last years – but the way it is rolling out and the filmmaker behind it – are garnering a new round of controversy. 

Stan Lee: The Final Chapter is a film by Jon Bolerjack, who was part of Stan’s entourage at conventions in his later years. Bolerjack was tasked with filming the goings on, and now he’s putting out the film. From the Kickstarter:

The events are chronicled by filmmaker Jon Bolerjack who became an assistant to Stan and a fixture of his inner circle. Jon gained unprecedented access and filmed everything he saw. What he uncovered was a thriving market where Stan’s signatures and memorabilia were converted into huge piles of cash and rival hucksters double-crossed each other to control Stan’s fortune. After years of collecting this footage he’s ready to share this shockingly and truly heartbreaking story with the world. 

Bolerjack is asking for $300,000 to finish the film, and has  60 reward tiers to make it happen. The rest of the story is pretty clear from the trailer:

In an interview with THR, Bolerjack explains more of how the film came to be: 

But it became apparent that Lee’s demanding schedule — traveling to conventions and spending hours signing autographs — was taking its toll. Bolerjack says he tried to help how he could, and acknowledges he broke the “cardinal rule” of documentary filmmaking by growing close to his subject.

“I grew to look at him as a friend, as family, and I really wanted to be there to advocate for him,” Bolerjack says, adding that he attempted to lessen the workload for Lee and advocated for more breaks. “I was doing the best I could.”

The legal tangles of Stan’s last years are an ugly story, and one I covered as it unfolded (There are a lot of stories about Stan Lee on this site but you can scroll back from that link.) Although not named in the trailer, the man who is Stan’s main handler is Max Anderson, who oversaw Stan’s convention appearances as his road manager. Anderson was a brusque figure with a criminal record, but he was still arguably preferable to Morgan, who ousted Anderson as Stan’s caretaker amid dueling accusations.  This story at THR from 2018 details the battles between various factions whose main motivation seemed to be keeping the Stan Lee money spout flowing, and certainly not the best interests of an elderly man who was grieving the death of his wife – and trying to support the lavish lifestyle of his only child. 

It was a lawless bunch. Morgan was charged with theft – stealing the proceeds of a signing – and elder abuse, and the matter went to trial, but ended in a hung jury, and the charges being dismissed in 2022. 

Anderson’s legal issues have continued however. Only last month he pled guilty to charges of tax fraud, after being charged with failing to report more than $1.2 million in income from selling autographed Stan Lee memorabilia:

In exchange for selling these memorabilia, Anderson received payments from buyers, typically in the form of cash or checks. These payments were considered regular income by the IRS and should have been reported on Anderson’s income tax return each year that he received money.

For tax years 2015 through 2018, income from the sold memorabilia totaled $289,460, $452,269, $414,166, and $80,590, respectively. In total, Anderson admitted to profiting approximately $1,236,485 in reportable income from the memorabilia sales which resulted in him owing the IRS approximately $482,833.

As part of his plea agreement, Anderson agreed to pay restitution to the IRS of approximately $482,833.

Which brings us back to Bolerjack and his project. While some notable comics figures are supporting the project for telling the true story surrounding a comics legend, others question the $300,000 ask. This includes money for casting, wardrobe and set construction, which suggests footage will be created “Dark Side of the Ring” style to dramatize events that weren’t filmed. 

Others are questioning the huge number of reward tiers – which include screenings, and variant editions of a tie-in comic:

“‘Captured Hero’ Archrival Comics Variant

A stunning photo comic capturing rare, candid moments of Stan Lee like you’ve never seen before. Shot by filmmaker Jonathan Bolerjack, this collection offers an intimate look at the legend’s life beyond the spotlight. Featuring 11 different covers, each showcasing a hand-picked image curated by its respective sponsor. Every book comes signed by Bolerjack, making it a must-have for true fans of Stan and his legacy! 

Even more serious reservations are emerging. Eric Gladstone, a writer/editor who worked at Stan Lee’s Pow! Entertainment wrote on Linked In:

I would encourage those of you in my network to not donate to/support the new “Stan Lee: The Final Chapter” Documentary on Kickstarter. As someone who worked with and cared deeply for Stan, I think it’s abhorrent that the director would offer “rewards” such as a tour of locations where abuse took place, and many, many signed/graded items.

More importantly, the director is misrepresenting himself and his role. He was not Stan’s assistant. Stan only had one assistant the entire time I worked for him, Mike Kelly, a Disney employee who had worked for Stan for nearly 20 years. The director, Jon Bolerjack, instead, was a videographer hired by one of Stan’s biggest abusers, Max Anderson, who is featured heavily in the documentary. From what I understand, some of the film is about Jon coming to terms with his role in the abuse. I also heard Jon was part of the recent investigation that got Max into legal trouble, but Jon’s asking for $300K to finish a documentary of this scope feels exploitative in itself.

The comments on the Kickstarter are also asking a lot of questions. A sample:

Stan Lee was a beloved man by millions. Standing by someone’s side recording their interactions with people who abused them, is also ABUSE. You filmed him being taking advantaged of. And for arguments sake let’s say you really couldn’t do anything and didn’t have the power… You then want to charge people money to support releasing information about a crime?

Absolutely shameful.

And the tiers? Seriously? How tone-deaf can you be? I understand making a film or documentary takes time and money. But as someone who makes their own content…Canva is 15 bucks a month. You can make a cinematic documentary just fine with it without asking people to fund it. But that would be acceptable if it were about something else. But it’s about a well-loved man who millions and millions of people love, obviously more than you.

Do you not see the wrong in your actions?

Speaking for myself, I’d like to hope Bolerjack really did try to help Stan and was one of the better people around him. And maybe this is a story he wants to tell. 

But it is a story I do not want to see. 

Over the years I’ve been in communication with several people who knew Stan or worked at conventions, and what was happening was known and deeply uncomfortable. It is true that Stan loved the spotlight and talking to fans, and he was driven by his need to make money to help his daughter, whom he clearly cared about. But he would also frequently fall asleep at signings and photo sessions, and his complaints and confusion (as seen in the trailer) were obvious to those who were there to see it. That frail figure in the green sweater he always wore became increasingly heartbreaking as the years wore on. 

I don’t need to see this sad, pathetic end. We know it happened and that is enough. For me. And maybe for you. 

That Lee was surrounded by such a pack of unscrupulous grifters in his later years stands in stark contrast to the heroism he wrote about. Maybe it was some karmic debt: Stan was a bit of a con man himself. But he also gave us stories and heroes that enriched our lives, and touched a lot of people. Let him have some dignity. He deserves that at least.