Marvel special effects: why is CGI in MCU films so bad - will studio’s VFX workers vote to unionise?

Marvel movies are mammoth projects - Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame is the most expensive back to back film project ever made, with the production costs estimated to have exceeded $1 billion.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has so far cost more than $4 billion to put together, and that rate increased by around $200 million for every new release, though the franchise has made back many times over, with total grosses of around $30 billion so far.

For all the money moving around on these projects, you’d expect the films to look perfect, but that has been far from the case, and with each new instalment fresh questions have been raised about the quality of visual effects in Marvel movies. 

With a new MCU film released every three months on average now (and that’s not even accounting for the roster of TV shows), it’s no wonder that those working on creating effects for the projects are feeling the strain, especially when the films are so reliant on CGI and other technologies that they may as well be considered animated films.

And it seems that visual artists have hit a breaking point, with Marvel crews ready to vote to unionise in the face of growing workloads. 

Why are special effects in Marvel films so bad?

Whilst a lot of the shots are edited seamlessly, it’s the ones that aren’t so smooth that audiences notice.

Avengers: Infinity War contained 2,760 different shots, and a whopping 2,680 of these involved some form of visual effects. That’s a lot of work, and for the most part, the effects artists did a great  job - digitally removing wiring, creating the Wakandan army, and adding superhero armour. The film was even recognised with an Oscar nomination for visual effects.

But, despite all the successes, audiences pounced on the few shots where the visual effects were so bad that they stood out like a sore thumb. In the case of Infinity War, the VFX was weakest in the shot of Bruce Banner’s head emerging from the Hulkbuster armour. His head looked like it was floating above the suit, and the shot was just not believable.  

There have been many more examples in later MCU releases, and the sloppiness seems to be becoming more common. Doctor Strange’s third eye in Multiverse of Madness reminded viewers of the YouTube short Annoying Orange, whilst plenty of scenes in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania looked like they had been made on the cheap, even though the film had a $200 million budget.

The disparity in quality of visual effects across and even within Marvel movies is due to the sheer amount of work that the VFX teams are tasked with. It has been estimated that Disney, which owns Marvel, is responsible for half of all VFX work being commissioned globally.

Marvel outsources its VFX work to companies like Industrial Light and Magic, which worked on Infinity War, but pays according to the number of shots the team works on, rather than the amount of work each shot needs.

This has led to a culture of overwork among VFX staff and means that some shots look like they have rushed simply because they have been. Because Marvel is responsible for so much of the VFX work being done in the industry, many companies will feel they can’t stand up to the studio and demand better working conditions.

Are Marvel VFX workers unionising?

Variety reported that VFX artists at Marvel Studios will vote on whether to unionise from 21 August with the vote count taking place on 12 September. 

VFX artists have traditionally not been unionised in the US, but the vote is expected to see the Marvel staff support a move to join the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE).

Mark Patch, VFX organiser for IATSE, said: “This is a historic first step for VFX workers coming together with a collective voice demanding respect for the work we do.”