Stan Lee is having a rough 2018. While his Marvel comic book creations continue to soar on the big screen, his health and personal well-being are constantly on the decline. And the 95-year-old superhero mastermind has another problem he must battle: pneumonia. In a recent video, the man behind Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four and much more put on a brave face to announce to his fans that he is fighting the lung infection. But Lee hopes to defeat it like one of his cartoonish baddies as soon as possible -- mainly so he can keep talking to his adoring legions around the world.
In the personal message, filmed by Stan Lee's filmmaking friend Keya Morgan and released by TMZ, the Marvel executive is notably groggy and not quite as chipper as he usually is in front of the camera-- but he keeps a positive attitude. Lee notes that he is seemingly recovering, and wanted to let all the viewers know that his thoughts are with the fans during this difficult time, and he is hoping to see them again soon.
I had a little bout of pneumonia I'm fighting, but it seems to be getting better. But I want you all to know that I'm thinking of you -- of course, I always think of the fans -- and I hope you're all doing well. I miss you all. I miss your enthusiasm... I want you to know that I still love you all, and I think that Marvel and Spidey and I had the best group of fans that any group in the world ever had. And I sure appreciate it... I hope the next time we talk, I'll be in even better shape. Maybe I'll have some of this pneumonia knocked down? And we can have some real fun over the Internet. Excelsior!
Given everything the face of Marvel has dealt with these past few months, it's pretty remarkable that Stan Lee is staying optimistic. Yesterday, it was reported that someone broke into Stan Lee's Hollywood Hills home and stole $1.4 million dollars from Lee's savings. This is after an individual stole $850,000 from Lee's checking account in January to pay for a condo. They both followed another incident at the end of 2017, where Lee was robbed $300,000. If that weren't enough trouble, Lee also had an ugly confrontation with a former bodyguard earlier this month. Lee was also recently rushed to the hospital for heart-related problems. Finally, he sadly lost his wife of nearly 70 years earlier last year, passing away at the age of 93.
It's not all (doctor) doom-and-gloom, though. Thankfully, Black Panther is doing marvelously at the box office (get it?). The newest superhero blockbuster, based on a character Stan Lee co-created, is currently overperforming at the box office; it's already set to make over half a billion dollars in two weeks. That's a lot of moolah. Plus, Marvel can look forward to Avengers: Infinity War making all kinds of money when it's released on May 4th. In the meantime, however, we hope Stan Lee can keep his good spirits afloat. It has been a rough start, but we're hoping things turn around soon. Excelsior!
