Los Angeles [US], May 27 (ANI): At a time when Marvel Comics has long-resurrected iconic characters for films, it is now the time to bring back the icon himself - Marvel's most famous creator, Stan Lee.

According to a Variety report, AI audio company ElevenLabs has struck an expansive deal with Stan Lee Universe to add the late Marvel writer's voice and likeness to the ElevenLabs Iconic Marketplace - its collection of celebrity voices and likenesses that various companies can license for commercial use.

Under the deal, Stan Lee's cloned voice will also narrate some of his favourite books in the Eleven Reader app. Among them, Stan Lee Book of the Month Club is set to debut with Robert Louis Stevenson's 'Treasure Island'.

Another 11 books are set to be adapted over the coming year, as per Deadline.

'You know what they never tell you about legends? They outlive the page,' the AI-generated version of Stan Lee says in the video released by ElevenLabs.

Speaking on the same, Chaz Rainey, a lawyer and board member for Stan Lee Universe, in a statement, shared 'Stan always believed in meeting his fans where they were: in the pages of a comic, at a convention, or in a quick on-screen cameo. This partnership is a way of continuing that. Fans have always told us that when they read his comics, they hear the words in Stan's voice, and now, thanks to ElevenLabs, we can make that a reality.'

This comes at a time when the voices and likenesses of several actors and personalities are available through ElevenLabs.

Some of them are Michael Caine, Judy Garland, Burt Reynolds, David Hasselhoff and Albert Einstein.

Stan Lee, who passed away in 2018 at the age of 95, already had his name, voice, and likeness licensed by Marvel in 2022 for using in films, TV shows, and Disney theme parks. (ANI)