It's Official: Spider-Man Is Coming Back To The MCU
At last, mom and dad are back together.
That's right, friends and Marvel fiends: Sony Pictures, Marvel Studios, and the Walt Disney Company have finally set aside their differences, returned to the negotiation table, and agreed to make a third Spider-Man movie together.
Variety had the details on how and when the companies kissed and made up.
Sony and Marvel confirmed on Friday, September 27 that an agreement had been reached to allow Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige to produce another Spidey flick to follow 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming and 2019's Spider-Man: Far From Home. This means that the ever-charming Tom Holland, the third actor to step into the Spider-Man suit and the man largely considered the best Peter Parker yet, will indeed swing back into the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reprise his role as the friendly neighborhood hero.
The peace-restoring meeting happened just recently, with Marvel, Sony, and Disney executives (including Feige, Sony Pictures head Tom Rothman, and Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn) inking the new deal on the evening of Thursday, September 26.
An important aspect of this agreement is, of course, the money, which is something that contributed to Sony and Marvel splitting in the first place. On August 20, 2019, it was announced that the two studios were unable to see eye-to-eye on how to rework their 2015 deal that gave Feige producing power in the Spider-Man franchise, let Holland's Spider-Man appear in Marvel movies, and granted Disney (which owns Marvel Studios) five percent of day-one box office profits as well as all merchandising revenue. Disney reportedly requested a 50 percent co-financing stake in the franchise, which Sony is said to have denied outright. Though subsequent reports claimed that the House of Mouse actually asked for a 30 percent share, it was evident that money was making both studios more than a little tense. Thankfully, Sony, Disney, and Marvel brass have now agreed that the latter two companies will receive 25 percent of the profits on the third Spider-Man movie, with Sony retaining 75 percent. Additionally, Disney will continue earning merchandising profits.
This newly confirmed third Spider-Man movie doesn't yet have a title, but it does have a release date: July 16, 2021. It also has Homecoming and Far From Home producer Amy Pascal on board to continue her producing role.
Feige expressed gratitude and excitement about the new deal being struck, saying in a statement released alongside the news, "I am thrilled that Spidey's journey in the MCU will continue, and I and all of us at Marvel Studios are very excited that we get to keep working on it. Spider-Man is a powerful icon and hero whose story crosses all ages and audiences around the globe."
Unsurprisingly, Pascal felt the same way: "This is terrific. Peter Parker's story took a dramatic turn in Far From Home and I could not be happier we will all be working together as we see where his journey goes."
Spidey's got a big future at Sony and Marvel
Perhaps the best part of this news (beyond the obvious shrill-shriek-inducing confirmation of a third Marvel-produced Spider-Man flick starring Tom Holland) is that the upcoming movie isn't the only project Holland is going to be a part of at the House of Heroes. According to Variety, the new agreement between Sony and Marvel details that Holland's Spider-Man will appear in at least one future Marvel Studios film. We haven't a clue what this movie might be — especially since Marvel's Phase 4 slate is already packed, with little room in which Spider-Man could feasibly fit, and its Phase 5 slate hasn't yet been announced — but it's clear that Marvel wants to keep Holland's iteration of the endlessly kind hero around for as long as possible.
Holland may be sticking with the MCU for two more movies, potentially even more if things pan out in his favor, but he also has a bright future ahead at Sony. When the Sony-Marvel divorce was first confirmed, it was reported that Holland was contracted for two future films under Sony Pictures. Now, it stands to reason that one of those projects is the third Spider-Man movie everyone's freaking out about right now, but what about the other one? It doesn't seem as though it's the forthcoming Marvel movie Holland's now slated for, since that project is housed at a completely different studio. So, what could that be?
Thanks to a tease from Feige himself, it's likely that yet another movie Holland's Spider-Man will be in is one under the umbrella of Sony's Spider-Verse, which includes Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Venom, and the impending films Venom 2, Morbius, and Kraven the Hunter.
As Feige dished, "[Spider-Man] also happens to be the only hero with the superpower to cross cinematic universes, so as Sony continues to develop their own Spidey-verse you never know what surprises the future might hold."
All in all, September 27, 2019 will go down in history as a victorious day for the folks at Sony, Disney, and Marvel, as well as for fans of Spider-Man, the MCU, and Tom Holland himself. The hero's future in film is no longer uncertain, his fans are no longer in distress, and the studios involved no longer have to worry about who can make the most money by banking off everyone's love for Spidey. Now that the web-slinger has officially returned to the MCU, the only thing left to do is figure out a name for the new Spider-Man movie. Our bet? Spider-Man: Home Sweet Home.