As the Avengers films demonstrated, Spidey belongs with his team of fellow superheroes, though he’s very capable on his own, too.
It seems the amicable, joint-custody-type deal Sony and Marvel had going on has unfortunately come to an end, as Disney are reportedly seeking 50 percent of the profits related to the character. As the deal isn’t so great from Sony’s point of view, it seems the agreement has concluded between the two. In a new statement, the studio has addressed some of the rumours, Marvel boss Kevin Feige’s involvement, and the possibility of future collaborations.
Sony said:
Much of today’s news about Spider-Man has mischaracterized recent discussions about Kevin Feige’s involvement in the franchise. We are disappointed, but respect Disney’s decision not to have him continue as a lead producer of our next live-action Spider-Man film.
We hope this might change in the future, but understand that the many new responsibilities that Disney has given him – including all their newly added Marvel properties – do not allow time for him to work on IP they do not own.
Kevin is terrific and we are grateful for his help and guidance and appreciate the path he has helped put us on, which we will continue.
Though the details of the deal are purposefully vague, as they often are when billions of dollars are involved, the possibility of projects further down the line are not ruled out.
The deal was initially struck in 2015 between the two studios, whereby they could share rights to Spider-Man, resulting in Tom Holland’s first appearance in Civil War, two standalone Spider-Man movies and two Avengers films. Sony handled the standalone movies, while Disney did the group efforts, according to MovieWeb.
However, the renegotiation of the percentage split seems to be a sticking point for the two studios, with our friendly neighbourhood Spidey stuck in the middle.
While the Oscar-winning animated Spider-Verse film proves Sony can do things on their own, not having Feige on board will undoubtedly be a blow – as he has helmed the past 10 years of Marvel films, grossing around $26.8 billion for the studio, with all films under his supervision opening at number one at the box office.
