J.C. Lee, the daughter of legendary Marvel creative Stan Lee, has spoken out for the first time in an interview with Business Insider to deny past allegations that she committed elder abuse toward both her father and her mother, Joan.
The accusations against J.C. Lee first began circulating in 2017 following the death of her mother, with the most damning portrait appearing in a 2018 The Hollywood Reporter piece. The report alleges that, under pressure from three other individuals connected to the Lees, J.C. Lee frequently pressured her parents for money and control of assets. It claims that she engaged in screaming matches with Stan Lee and had what the article describes as a "powder-keg" relationship with him, with claims including verbal arguments and at least one alleged physical altercation. THR was provided photos of a bruise on Joan Lee’s arm and included detailed accusations that J.C. Lee has denied.
Now, in the Business Insider interview, J.C. Lee says that the accusations were all "a lie." She says she did not make a public denial at the time of the initial THR piece under advisement from people around her. "You think I haven't regretted it to this day?" she said. "They are all lies. That photo is insane. I never did it."
J.C. Lee acknowledged that she did often get into screaming fights with her parents over money, but says it never became physical. "I never ever touched my parents," she said.
Stan Lee died of a heart attack in 2018 at the age of 95.
The full interview with J.C. Lee in Business Insider recounts her struggles growing up as the child of the famous Stan Lee and her ongoing troubles with money, being manipulated by others, loneliness, creativity, and living with her father's legacy.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
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