Len Wein with a Swamp Thing cosplayer, Photo: Lex Larson, at CONvergence/Wikimedia Commons

Len Wein, the comic book writer and editor who co-created DC’s Swamp Thing and edited Watchmen, has passed away.


Wein, who revived the X-Men in 1975 with artist Dave Cockrum, giving birth to the modern form of the franchise, had a long and distinguished career all over the comics world. Wein, who was born in 1948, was reportedly undergoing health problems and tweeted about his time in the hospital as recently as September 7th.

Reports of his death come from several comics veterans on Twitter, including Kurt Busiek and Brian Michael Bendis. The exact cause of death is unknown.


I’ll be updating this post throughout the evening when and if more information surfaces.

UPDATE 9:20pm: Wein’s passing has been confirmed in a blog post by DC Comics.