And the Marvel plan seems to have already run into snags. Hollywood insiders say Arad had hoped to make Captain America Marvel's debut film. But that's not happening; Arad says he couldn't line up the director he wanted until 2009. Moreover, two films Arad now says could be among those first out of the gate, the Hulk sequel and Iron Man, aren't covered by the Merrill loan, which means Marvel will need another way to finance them. Arad won't say how he'll do that, but Marvel is not a particularly big company right now, and its resources - and ability to withstand costly flops - are limited. "It's one thing for major Hollywood studios to lose money," says former AMC Entertainment president Robert L. Friedman. "For smaller studios, it's a whole different ball game. Marvel had better keep its budgets in line.
