Marvel’s Make-A-Wish Tradition Soars to New Heights

The Walt Disney Company is the world’s largest Wishmaker, teaming up with the Make-A-Wish Foundation to grant a wish every hour to children diagnosed with critical illnesses, reinforcing their sense of hope and joy. This distinction carries over to Marvel, which has granted Marvel-themed wishes to recipients worldwide for years, often tied to the biggest Marvel Studios films and TV shows. This compassionate tradition continues with  Wishes Assemble, the first-of-its-kind Disneyland Resort experience for dozens of Make-A-Wish recipients.

As part of Disney’s Week of Wishes, an annual celebration of Disney's longstanding tradition as a leading Wishmaker, Wishes Assemble brought together 40 Make-A-Wish kids and their families for an Avengers-themed day at Disneyland Resort. Participating in the Super Hero event of a lifetime were fan-favorite stars Anthony Mackie (Captain America) and Paul Bettany (Vision) who helped the kids’ dreams of becoming an Avenger come true. Wishes Assemble is part of a company-wide Disney event that will grant nearly 200 signature wish experiences over the course of the week.

Wishes Assemble is far from the first Make-A-Wish event involving the iconic heroes of the Marvel Universe. A recent experience took place on the set of Marvel Studios’ Thunderbolts*, with Make-A-Wish kid Aurora Dennison visiting the production to meet Sebastian Stan, who plays her favorite Super Hero Bucky Barnes. In addition to getting to meet Stan’s co-stars on the New Avengerz, Stan swapped dog tags with Aurora, trading her fan-made Bucky Barnes tags for his movie-used prop dog tags, truly making the experience an unforgettable dream.

A similar experience had Kenny Baraaowski and his family visit the set of The Fantastic Four: First Steps in London to meet the cast and witness some of the hit MCU movie’s filming. Kenny took this experience to heart, with him and his family hosting a fundraiser for the Make-A-Wish Foundation the following year. This fundraiser raised over $10,000 for the Foundation to ensure that future Make-A-Wish kids would have their own wishes granted to keep the magic going.

Another Marvel Make-A-Wish event at Disneyland Resort had Oregon Make-A-Wish kid Colton visit Avengers Campus at the California theme park. Colton became an honorary Avenger for the day, meeting several of his favorite heroes, especially Iron Man, as he arrived in his own Iron Man costume. The assembled heroes also honored Colton’s older sister Khloe, who donated her own bone marrow for the life-saving procedure to treat her brother’s condition, with Black Panther referring to her as a real-life Super Hero.

One of the most notable Make-A-Wish experiences resulted in a beloved MCU moment captured in the 2017 movie Thor: Ragnarok. While visiting the movie’s set, a Make-A-Wish kid suggested to Chris Hemsworth that Thor should announce the Hulk as “a friend from work” when the two characters are reunited. Amused and supportive of the improvisation, Hemsworth incorporated the line while filming, with it not only making it into the final film but appearing in the movie’s trailer.

Another noteworthy Marvel Make-A-Wish experience had Georgia-based Make-A-Wish kid Seth receive a once-in-a-life glimpse of his dream job of being a sound engineer. Seth was flown out to Marvel Studios in Burbank, California, where he met the sound design team working on Black Widow, learning about their professional process and participating in sound mixing sessions for the 2021 movie. For Seth, this experience was an unbeatable professional apprenticeship and an invaluably insightful look his lifelong dream career.

Not all Marvel Make-A-Wish experiences are movie-centric, with some experiences getting a more unique touch. Viker, a Make-A-Wish kid in Australia, received his own expert training to learn the skills of his personal favorite Super Hero Spider-Man, complete with an appearance by Spidey himself. After learning how to websling and wall-crawl at the National Institute of Circus Arts (NICA), Viker and Spider-Man put his newfound skills to good use, searching for local missing sports mascot Woofer at Marvel Stadium.

From meeting their big screen heroes to getting to embrace the Super Hero fantasy come true, Marvel has been a prominent Wishmaker for countless Make-A-Wish recipients around the globe. These life-changing experiences instill a sense of hope that inspires kids to face their respective conditions with a bravery surpassing those of the mightiest Super Heroes in the Marvel Universe. 

The greatest characters in any iteration of the Marvel Universe rely on compassion and courage far more than their strength, and the Make-A-Wish Foundation is firmly built on those values. Super Heroes are aspirational figures that make fans want to bring out the best of themselves to help others and the world around them. After all, as any Marvel fan knows, with great power there must also come great responsibility. Working with the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the Walt Disney Company and Marvel help kids discover the great power within themselves to overcome formidable obstacles at an early age.

Whatever the experience, whoever the hero, Marvel helps Make-A-Wish kids go higher, further, faster together, changing their lives forever.