Insider-Man

Despite these tiffs, studio honchos generally praise Arad for his work, which continues even after a deal is signed. "Other rights holders just want to get their movies made and don't care as much, or are so married to something that they can't see outside," says Universal production president Mary Parent. And filmmakers give props to Arad's encyclopedic knowledge of the Marvel universe (added bonus: calming the nerves of rabid comic fans). Recalls Spider-Man director Sam Raimi, "At the end of [one] scene when Mary Jane is supposed to turn and leave, Avi pulled me aside and said, 'You know, one of the trademarks of the comic was that Mary Jane Watson always refers to those she's very fond of as "Tiger."' It was exactly what I needed." Raimi adds that he's personally invested in Arad's approach: "Once I met him, I started buying Marvel stock."

Raimi may be the only one. Marvel shares have fluctuated wildly in the last year, from just under $2 to just over $9. What's more, the debt-laden company is very closely held--Perlmutter owns about 40 percent--and secretive about its finances. Rumors of a sale to toy giant Hasbro circulated in 1999; even today, many industry watchers believe a monolith like Sony (which assisted with Spider-Man's successful merchandising) may swoop in. Arad quashes speculation of a sale, saying "I'd rather keep this company forever. For me, it's a love story, not a day job." And while Marvel generated $57.2 million in net sales in the first quarter of 2002, up 34 percent from the previous year, Wall Street has adopted a wait-and-see attitude. Says CNNfn stocks editor Chris Huntington, "It's just back to kind of breaking even."

But Arad's stock in Hollywood is rising. When he's not visiting the Hulk and Daredevil sets, he's looking over scripts for Spider-Man 2 and Blade 3--not to mention researching special-effects options for far-off projects like Universal's Namor. Recently, he watched the Hulk crew gush at a screening of the previous day's footage. "These people cheer in dailies," he marvels, adding slyly: "We should sell them tickets."