Stan Lee: The Final Chapter, has reportedly alleged that Stan Lee‘s longtime road manager, Max Anderson, have stolen more than $21 million from the ailing comic legend in the final years of his life.
Directed by the Marvel creator’s former assistant Jon Bolerjack, the documentary is set to premiere at San Diego Comic-Con on July 23 before arriving on VOD on July 28.
The exposé combined years of behind-the-scenes footage that Bolerjack shot while accompanying Stan to conventions and shows him growing increasingly confused about where his money went.
In one scene captured in the film, it was reported that the late entertainment icon asked Anderson how much money he had made at an event, to which Anderson replied, “Not enough. It’s never enough, Stan.”
The footage backed up claims made in a civil lawsuit that Stan’s daughter, Joan Celia Lee, filed against Anderson, accusing him of elder abuse.
That lawsuit alleged that Anderson used his control over Stan’s life to steal more than $21 million, along with hundreds of pieces of memorabilia, including Batman creator Bob Kane‘s original drawing of the Joker and several movie props from Marvel films.
Joan alleged that Anderson misappropriated at least $11.1 million in autograph revenue and another $10.2 million from Stan’s appearance fees. The two sides settled in May 2025, days before the case was set to go to trial, though the terms were not disclosed.
The documentary also features on-camera interviews with several people who worked alongside the producer and Anderson at conventions, including Alex Barajas, who assisted Stan with merchandising and Jerry Blank, his former business development manager.
Barajas described the process of counting cash after signings, saying that once an event wrapped, those Anderson trusted would go into a back room to count the money. He recalled that handling so much money with no oversight changed him, noting that staffers were simply handed piles of cash to count before turning it over to Anderson.
One of the more striking exchanges in the documentary shows Stan venting to members of his entourage about a specific transaction he could not make sense of.
He described Anderson arriving with a bag full of cash, taking Stan to the bank, having him sign something, then moving the money to a different account the next day in connection with a house purchase.
Stan said he asked Anderson to simply write down what he had done so he could understand it, but Anderson never did, citing a lack of time.
Bolerjack has also clarified ahead of the release that Stan gave him permission before his death to use the footage he had gathered and to eventually share it publicly.
The director spent years and a significant amount of his own money finishing the project, which also includes interviews with comic book figures such as Rob Liefeld, Roy Thomas and Mark Waid discussing what they came to learn about Lee’s treatment in his final years.
