Rob Liefeld Shares A Life-Like Version Of His Infamous Captain America Drawing
Every few years the internet circles back to that Rob Liefeld Captain America drawing. It has become part of comic culture lore, resurfacing again and again, often with Liefeld himself joining in on the jokes.
The Deadpool co-creator became a superstar in the ’90s for artwork that jumped off the page. His style is unmistakable, packed with oversized energy and characters dialed up to eleven. Fans loved it, critics took their swings, and it even earned playful jabs in Deadpool 2 and Deadpool & Wolverine.
Nothing embodies that legacy more than his famous Captain America Heroes Reborn promotional piece. The moment comic fans see “Rob Liefeld” and “Captain America” together, that image flashes in their minds.
This week, the artist shared something new. Over on X, he posted a life-like reinterpretation of the original ’90s artwork, an image he said was sent to him, likely created using AI.
He captioned the post with a simple note, “Sent to me. Shared with you all,” clearly having some fun with the audience. The result is strange and fascinating. The original drawing barely works within stylized superhero proportions, but when those extremes are pushed into a realistic form, the effect becomes something else entirely.
For anyone unfamiliar with the origins of the drawing, it was created as a promotional image for Marvel’s ambitious Heroes Reborn relaunch. Liefeld was previously asked if any real-life reference informed his take.
He said the goal was simply to make Steve Rogers look imposing, and he recalled the enthusiastic reaction the piece received when it debuted during a Marvel conference in New York.
He said: "I just wanted to draw a big, bold Captain America. Here's the deal: They blew that up at the Heroes Reborn conference in New York City at Marvel Comics.
“Jim Lee and myself flew out to New York. He had his [image], and that was the image, and it was like a banner behind this. And people in the audience were like, 'Oh, oh, look at how great [that] Captain America [is].'"
According to Liefeld, the criticism did not surface until years later once internet culture kicked into high gear.
"I didn't hear anything about that image until the 2000s. It was like somebody decided, 'I'll meme it. I'll do it.' And I don't mind it, either. It doesn't shake, rattle or roll me. And I'll tell you this—I did not do an homage to that cover for, now, 27 years, and I just did one. So, I think it's going to do really well. I think, again, it sparks something in people."
Despite its reputation, the artwork has real fans. In 2023, the original Captain America piece sold at auction for an impressive $132,000. Liefeld talked about how he felt about that number, and he shared how much it meant to hear from bidders who grew up loving that era.
"I was pleasantly surprised. That would be the truth—pleasantly surprised. And then, having talked to a lot of guys who were bidding on it afterwards, 'cause that community's fairly small. You know, they didn't hold back on... It goes back 30 years on how much they dig that Captain America stuff, and that Heroes Reborn stuff.
“It kind of closed the circle. 'Cause, people were like, 'Man, that is my favorite Captain America, and I just had to have it, I had to have it.' So, that was exciting. But, [to] answer your original question, man, I had low expectations. There's very few things I have a greater expectation for. I generally keep it [gestures to the ground] here, you know?"
When asked if the high sale price felt like revenge toward critics, he dismissed the idea completely. "No, no, I don't. As always, I just focus on the people who liked it."
Liefeld’s playful post of the life-like reinterpretation simply keeps the tradition alive. Every few years, the meme resurfaces, fans laugh, artists debate it, and the cycle continues.