The Jewish Origins of Superheroes: Honoring the Men Who Reimagined the World
From Superman to Spider-Man, the most iconic comic book heroes were born from the imaginations of Jewish creators who transformed personal struggle into global mythology.
When fans think of Spider-Man, Superman, or the X-Men, they likely picture masked vigilantes and super-powered battles. Few realize that these enduring characters were crafted by Jewish writers and artists whose personal experiences of persecution, resilience, and hope during and after World War II profoundly shaped modern mythology.
In the 1930s, as antisemitism surged across the United States and Europe, Jewish creatives found themselves shut out of mainstream publishing and media industries. Signs reading “No Jews Need Apply” were common outside office doors. The comic book industry, considered fringe and unpolished at the time, was one of the few spaces that welcomed them.
Out of this exclusion came extraordinary innovation.
Stan Lee, born Stanley Lieber to Romanian-Jewish immigrants, grew up in poverty and began working in comics as a teenager. He went on to co-create Spider-Man and the X-Men, characters who reflected his sense of alienation and his belief in justice. “Mutants,” targeted for being different, were his metaphor for marginalized people everywhere.
Jack Kirby, born Jacob Kurtzberg, was another working-class Jewish kid from New York. The son of Austrian immigrants, Kirby fought in World War II and later channeled those experiences into Captain America, a patriotic hero who stood up to fascism at a time when America hadn’t yet entered the war.
Hollywood, for decades, masked the Jewish identities of these creators and their characters. But in today’s cultural climate, that history is finally being reclaimed and celebrated.
A new wave of Jewish creators is emerging, unapologetically foregrounding Jewish identity, folklore, and resistance in their work. Among them is the unbeatable trio: Benjamin Berkowitz, Max Berkowitz and the actor Josh Gad, the minds behind the upcoming graphic novel The Writer.
Describing his work as “a love letter to Jewish folklore and mythology, and the creators who pioneered this industry,” Berkowitz says the story is “about resilience, memory, and the power of stories to fight back against the dark. And you never know, this comic book character could be the next Spider-Man.”
Berkowitz’s work reflects a larger movement in comics and popular media: the unapologetic celebration of Jewish heroes, both fictional and real. With anti-Semitism on the rise all around the world, this new chapter in storytelling doesn’t just honor the past, it defiantly shapes the future.
As these creators reclaim their history and imagine bold futures, a powerful message is emerging: the fight for truth, justice, and survival isn’t just the stuff of comic books, it’s a legacy.