Marvel Studios President Makes $500K Donation To Westfield

WESTFIELD, NJ - He's helped shape entire universes on screens big and small and now he is assisting students in Westfield to do the same. Westfield High School Class of 1991 alum and Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has donated $500,000 to the district, according to Superintendent Margaret Dolan.

“Earlier this year, as we finalized plans for a complete overhaul of the TV studio, we reached out to Kevin in March to ask whether he would be willing to contribute to the cost of the studio renovation project,” said Dolan at Tuesday's school board meeting. “What followed was several telephone conversations with Kevin’s staff and, ultimately, with Kevin himself who took great interest in the plans for the new TV studio.”

Dolan said that Feige delivered the commencement address to the Class of 2013 and, at that time, toured his high school alma mater. The tour included a visit to the television studio with Feige remarking that the studio, in which he had spent many hours during his high school years, looked essentially the same.

Work began this summer to renovate the aging facility and turn it into a new soundproof production space with studio cameras on pedestals equipped with teleprompters and tally lights, an updated lighting grid, new editing workstations, a professional control room and, because the studio is a teaching space, movable furniture and multiple curtain tracks to create diverse, quick set changes. The renovation is expected to be completed in the next several months.

“Today, I am proud and grateful to accept a donation of $500,000 from the Feige Family Trust to be used specifically for audio/video equipment in the TV studio,” Dolan said. “This generous donation will greatly enhance the new studio’s technical and instructional capabilities. We thank Kevin for his interest and support and we congratulate him on his tremendous success.”

Marvel Studios is known for its blockbuster superhero films including Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Panther and The Avengers series. Feige, the mastermind of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was recently named Chief Creative Officer of Marvel. He will now be responsible for the overall creative direction of Marvel’s storytelling across mediums, including publishing, film, TV, and animation. Marvel Television and Marvel Family Entertainment will be moving under the Marvel Studios banner, according to Variety.

Whether or not Westfield's new studio will participate in Phase 5 of the MCU is unclear as Feige has not revealed his endgame.

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