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Marvel Comics Made Millions Off WWE Legend Hulk Hogan, Here’s How

Published 07/12/2022, 11:30 AM EDT

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Hulk Hogan is one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. His name is synonymous with professional wrestling and the fans will always remember him as the man who put this sport on the map. Along with the new head of WWWF, Hulk Hogan would create magic in and out of the ring. But there was one difficulty when Hogan signed with Vince McMahon in 1983, and that was the name Hulk.

While people know about the contract that obligated Terry Bollea, the real name of Hulk Hogan, and WWE to give money to Marvel in exchange for the use of the name ‘Hulk’, there is another factor of that contract. Being active for 20 years, 1984 – 2004, the contract must have billed Marvel loads of money, considering Hogan’s fame.

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Unrivaled in merchandise and booking, Hogan was the most popular wrestler in the ’80s and ’90s. His charisma would bring wrestling and WWE into the pop culture sphere, immortalizing the sport. So it comes as no surprise that Marvel bagged the right horse.

Note: The research and dedication of Pro Wrestling Stories inspired this article. We credit all the facts used in the article to the original source. You can check out the article here.

How much Marvel made from only one animated TV show featuring Hulk Hogan

The first thing on your mind may be the amount that Marvel gained from Hogan’s matches. Well, according to the contract, Marvel received $100 for every Hulk Hogan match. But one has to remember that in the ’90s when Hogan switched brands, he introduced Hollywood Hogan to the world. And thus, Marvel wouldn’t receive money for the nWo’s leader’s matches.

WWE Legend Hulk Hogan and Marvel Comics’ Shocking Business Deal

Counting up all the matches from the start of the contract to the end in 2004 and excluding the matches under the Hollywood persona as well as the Mr. America gimmick, comes to 1,102. Thus, the total amount Marvel gained from Hogan’s matches comes to $110,200. While that might not be big for Marvel, it’s something when it is added up with everything else.

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Talking about the other things, one of the biggest cash cows for Marvel was the Hulkamania t-shirt. Taking inflation into account, the price of one shirt comes to $30.50 and the sale number for the shirt is around 1.9 million. So the grand total for the shirts comes to a whopping $521,550.

WATCH THIS STORY: WWE Legend Hulk Hogan’s Greatest Moments

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If you only take these two numbers into account, that’s $631,750, which is more than half a million. And that is just taking into a shirt and one TV show. For instance, we did not even include the figurines, sweatshirts, and all the weird ’90s kids’ toys with the name Hulk Hogan on them.

Tell us what you think about the money Marvel acquired through this contract in the comments below.

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Written by:

Murtaza Bharmal

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Murtaza Bharmal is a WWE and AEW writer at EssentiallySports. Pursuing an English Literature degree, he is very fond of both storytelling and the wrestling promotions. His passion for wrestling started when Randy Orton and John Cena were squaring it off in the ring, but it magnified when Sasha Banks and Bayley put on a masterpiece in NXT.
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Edited by:

Paras Pande