calsnowskier
Sarcastic F-wad
IIRC, Marvel was about to go under at the time, and was trying to do anything they could just to stay afloat. And at that time, Batman and Superman were the only properties to make successful big screen appearances, and at that, with HUGE budgets that made the idea scary. And Spidey was the only Marvel character with any mainstream appeal. And Marvel Studios did not exist yet.
People tend to forget what a huge risk Ironman was. He was a very minor B-level hero with a relatively unknown lead actor with a very checkered past. How that movie was successful is still a head scratcher today.
But yes, seeing those decisions, by both sides, today is a bit