Destin Daniel Cretton and Andrew Guest joked about the Auteur Award going to a Disney+ Marvel series as they accepted IndieWire’s spring 2026 Auteur Award during a June 4 ceremony in Los Angeles, crediting critics, journalists, and Marvel’s openness to creativ
When Destin Daniel Cretton and Andrew Guest walked onstage at the spring 2026 IndieWire Honors to accept the Auteur Award, they didn’t wait long to name what they called the elephant in the room.
“I don’t know who’s in charge of naming these things. but I’m pretty sure they never imagined the Auteur Award going to a Marvel series on Disney+. ” Cretton said to laughter in the room. “We’re just calling out what everyone is thinking. When you picture an auteur, you picture Kubrick or Fellini. Or films like ‘Magnolia’ or ‘Breaking the Waves,’ not ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day.’”.
The humor landed because it carried a real dilemma: how a superhero buddy comedy about a struggling actor can be just as focused on the logistics of auditions as on saving the universe. Cretton and Guest framed that tension as something hard for any brand to sell—yet they said the vision survived and even found an audience.
Guest then turned the spotlight to the people who helped make the case for the show. “The truth is. even though this is a Marvel series. it has needed critics and journalists to find it and champion it. and we’re incredibly grateful. ” he said. “Thank you IndieWire for being our champions, and we want to thank our studio for being offsite a lot.”.
Their acceptance remarks didn’t come out of nowhere. Earlier, during the pre-Honors interview with IndieWire, both men addressed Marvel’s internal openness to creative risk taking. Cretton described the company as one built by film lovers, not just comic-book devotees.
“I think what a lot of people don’t see from the outside is that Marvel, like most studios, but Marvel in particular, is made up of a lot of people who not only love comics, but love movies,” Cretton said. “A lot of the executives went to film school and are major cinema buffs.”
Guest echoed that idea when he talked about how the response to the show felt like a reward for fans who found it. “And the fact that we did have the response we did is a testament to Marvel’s risk-taking on this. ” he said. “I feel like they wanted to reward the fans who found this show. which is just thrilling for us because it’s a gift to be able to keep making it.”.
Thursday, June 4, marked this season’s IndieWire Honors ceremony in Los Angeles, paired with an intimate cocktail reception and ceremony. The night is set to continue generating more content. including video interviews and outtakes. and Cretton and Guest’s complete speech is available in the video above.
Destin Daniel Cretton Andrew Guest IndieWire Honors Auteur Award Marvel Disney+ Spider-Man: Brand New Day Netflix? no Los Angeles June 4 2026 interviews comedy auditions