In 1993, McFarlane contracted Neil Gaiman to write "Spawn" #9. While doing so, Gaiman introduced the characters Cogliostro, Angela, and Medieval Spawn. All three characters were designed and co-created by Todd McFarlane and continued to be featured in the series after Gaiman's involvement, and some had tie-ins with McFarlane's toy company. Cogliostro had a prominent role in the live-action movie in 1997. McFarlane had agreed that Gaiman was a co-creator of the characters and paid him royalties for reprints, graphic novels, and action figures. After a few years, he ceased the payment of royalties and gave Gaiman notice that he owned all rights to the characters, citing the copyright notice from #9 and claimed that Gaiman's work had been work-for-hire and that McFarlane was the sole owner.