After word of Spider-Man related negotiations between Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures leaked last year, many comic book fans have been wondering if there would ever be a chance to see the famed web-slinger back in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Today we learn that the answer to that question is an extremely exciting YES!
Marvel has officially announced that a deal has been made with Sony Pictures that will see a brand new version of Spider-Man join the big screen universe that includes the likes of Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, and the Guardians of the Galaxy. According to the new deal, a new version of Spider-Man will launch with a Marvel film - which has been unidentified at this point - and Sony Pictures will thereafter release the next insallment on July 28, 2017 - a project that will be co-produced by Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige and the team at Marvel Studios along with outgoing Sony Pictures President Amy Pascal. The two companies will work together on "a new creative direction for the web slinger. Sony Pictures will continue to finance, distribute, own and have final creative control of the Spider-Man films.
Basically, Amazing Spider-Man franchise as it currently exists is kaput, and the franchise is once again getting a fresh start with a version of the wall crawler who fits within the continuity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe but is still largely controlled by Sony. Additionally, it’s noted that both companies are still working out details that could see characters from the larger MCU appear in future Spider-Man movies.
While some may be understandably concerned that Sony still has so much power over Spider-Man following the not-so-great reboot that was The Amazing Spider-Man series, this may actually be the best possible deal for fans of the superhero. After all, Marvel can really only make so many films per year, and they have a lot of ground to cover if they are serious about making the cinematic world as in-depth as the world they’ve spent decades building in the comics. With Sony by their side, Marvel can keep making movies for new characters and sequels for established ones while also potentially never interrupting a constant stream of Spider-Man films that are being released by a partnering studio in parallel.
Obviously at this point things are still in the very early stages, but we can likely expect some big moves to be coming down the pike in the next few weeks and months – as Marvel Studios will need to find not only a director to helm the first MCU Spider-Man movie, but also find a brand new start to play the titular superhero (sorry Andrew Garfield). Stay tuned for more updates!
