A new documentary by director Jon Bolerjack – Stan Lee: The Final Chapter – is set to expose the Marvel icon’s tragic final years. Lee was exploited by former business partners for commercial gain in his final years. In the years before his death at 95 in 2018, Lee dealt with mistreatment, manipulation, and abuse.
Bolerjack, who became an assistant to Lee, was a fixture of the comic book writer’s inner circle and filmed whatever he saw. Lee was best known for his work with Marvel Comics, having helped create teams and characters like the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, the Avengers, and the X-Men.
Who is Jon Bolerjack?
Bolerjack was an assistant and friend of Lee. He worked closely with Lee during the last four years of the writer’s life.
At the start of the trailer of the new documentary, Bolerjack says, “My name is Jon Bolerjack and for the last four years of Stan Lee’s life, I was his assistant, his confidant, but most importantly, his friend. I travelled the world with him, witnessing firsthand the incredible highs of his legendary career, but also the heartbreaking lows.”
Besides having worked for Lee, Bolerjack is a creative director at Narrator Inc., which is a Los Angeles-based film marketing firm, according to soapcentral.com. He is also a former comic book artist.
Bolerjack is said to have followed Lee around the world to various comic book conventions and movie premieres. He captured interesting moments and conversations at Lee’s Hollywood Hills home.
Bolerjack revealed that he has been spending the past few years turning hundreds of hours of footage into the documentary. A comic book fanatic, Bolejack studied documentaries at film school. He met Lee through a mutual friend about a decade ago to pitch Lee on making a reality show. After Lee agreed, Bolerjack became part of his entourage.
Lee died in 2018 at the age of 95. Bolerjack revealed that the writer wanted his struggles to be known. “I spoke to him about this at length, even toward the very end of his life. A lot of things have happened to him, but I didn’t get the real sense that he felt shame about it,” Bolerjack reportedly said. “I think he wanted it out there to be that sort of warning.”
“I grew to look at him as a friend, as family, and I really wanted to be there to advocate for him,” Bolerjack added, claiming he tried to lessen the workload for Lee and even advocated for more breaks. “I was doing the best I could.”