SPIDER-MAN: Despite New Marvel/Sony Deal, Kevin Feige May Be Winding Down Spidey's MCU Role

It's fair to say that comic book fans everywhere are losing their minds over Spider-Man's return to the MCU but a new report points to it potentially being a temporary resolution! Read on for details...

By JoshWilding - Sep 28, 2019 02:09 AM EST

Filed Under: No Way Home

It was confirmed yesterday that Spider-Man will return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe for one more solo outing and an appearance in a currently undisclosed future Marvel Studios movie. This is great news for fans and it sounds like Sony Pictures will also use Tom Holland's wall-crawler in their own universe (or one that's very, very loosely connected to the MCU).

However, a new post from The Hollywood Reporter points to Kevin Feige having a very different endgame in mind for the webbed warrior.

"Though both sides are hinting the pact could be extended again," it reads, "Feige seems to be plotting an endgame that will wrap up Peter Parker's story in the MCU and could see the character cross over into Sony's own budding universe of characters."

In other words, the plan could be to somehow send Spidey off into the sunset in a definitive way that makes fans happy while also leaving the door open to Sony continuing his adventures, albeit in their own Spider-Verse. That would certainly be a better solution than what we were facing (a major cliffhanger it would be down to Sony to address with no links to the MCU).

Time will tell what happens but we never expected Spidey to return after what happened a couple of months ago, so there's still a chance he could stick around.

What do you guys think?

Hit the "View List" button to check out some of
the crazy ideas Sony once had for the Spider-Man franchise!

Spider-Man Joins The Sinister Six

Sony mulled over a lot of different Sinister Six ideas, many of which we'll touch on later in this article. However, one version would have seen Spidey recruited to the team by Doctor Octopus before the villain inevitably betrays the wall-crawler and shows his true colours.

Drew Goddard reportedly wanted Matt Damon to play him and the likes of Colin Firth, Daniel Craig, Will Smith, and Denzel Washington were also suggested by the studio.

The team would have battled an alien called Gog in the Savage Land (as well as dinosaurs) and the movie's MacGuffin was set to be the actual Pandora's Box. Another idea thrown around would have seen the wall-crawler don the Venom Symbiote and ask the team for help in stopping Carnage. However, there was one big concern: the word "Sinister" might alienate younger moviegoers.

Seriously.

Spider-Man Must Be White And Can't Be Gay

This rather controversial rule is actually something Marvel specified when Sony Pictures purchased the film rights to Spider-Man. You see, while Sony does technically have full control of the web-slinger, there are indeed some things they can't do, and that means ensuring that he's a white male who "is not a homosexual (unless Marvel has portrayed that alter ego as a homosexual)."

His parents must always be absent from his childhood, he must be bitten by a spider, and the black costume has to be a Symbiote and not a suit of his own design. Also, Spidey "does not torture; does not kill in defense of self or others; does not use foul language beyond PG-13; does not smoke tobacco; does not sell/distribute illegal drugs; does not abuse alcohol; does not have sex before the age of 16; does not have sex with anyone below the age of 16."

I think those last few probably go without saying, but it's good to know Spidey can't be a sex offender!

A Spider-Man For Millennials

It seems Sony realised that Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker wasn't exactly the most accessible version of the character, so it was at this point they decided that the next version should appear to millennials. Apparently, youngsters use "N.B.D." ("No Big Deal") on social media to describe doing yoga and veganism, and the studio wanted to emphases that everything is "N.B.D." to Spidey.

Spider-Man's movements are "beautiful," so Sony fancied tying that into the Electronic Dance Music craze...providing they could find a "killer DJ." At the time, Snapchat had introduced its "Story" function and the studio also wanted the web-slinger to get in on that because the hero's Snapchat circle "would be huge, and very buzzworthy and cool." What a film all this would have made, eh?

Sam Raimi Was Offered The Chance To Return

Sam Raimi was supposed to direct Spider-Man 4, but that never happened and we got The Amazing Spider-Man instead. However, out of what seemed to be sheer desperation, Sony approached the filmmaker with the idea that he could return and reboot the franchise...for the third time.

The plan was to make another trilogy and, if needs be, they would have had Raimi serve as a producer.

Interestingly, Sony also considered having Drew Goddard make the leap from Sinister Six to this Spider-Man reboot as both a writer and director. There was a lengthy wishlist of directors, though, including names like James Gunn, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, Edgar Wright, and Colin Trevorrow.

The Amazing Spider-Man 3 And 4

If you don't believe that Sony was creatively bankrupt at this point, look no further than what they were mulling over for The Amazing Spider-Man 3 and 4. The wall-crawler was going to create a formula that would bring back the dead, thereby resurrecting both Captain Stacy and Gwen (presumably, Uncle Ben would have also returned in some capacity).

The lead villain was set to be Harry Osborn's Green Goblin, but we would have also seen Norman Osborn as a Goblin - after that formula was used on his severed head, which was being kept in what was essentially a jar in the bowels of Oscorp.

Marc Webb has also alluded to The Vulture and Sinister Six showing up, while The Gentleman was expected to take on a much larger role in proceedings as well. Needless to say, this all sounds completely batsh*t crazy and it's hard to imagine this being anything other than a disaster. Oh, and Aunt May spinoff was indeed considered and would have been a spy movie in the vein of Man Men.

Spider-Man Grows Up

Marvel Studios' Spider-Man reboot put the wall-crawler straight back into high school, but Sony gave some serious thought to having Peter Parker grow up and enter the adult world from the start.

They wanted to skip the origin story and kick things off with a version of the character "juggling with adult issues." Sony noted that, "He’s done so in the comics for decades, and kids still found this fun to read." It also sounded like they would have portrayed him as a science teacher in a high school.

Many fans would love to see an older version of the wall-crawler on the big screen, but this idea was ultimately scrapped when Kevin Feige decided to introduce Spidey as an inexperienced hero.

Kraven's Last Hunt

We know that a movie starring Kraven the Hunter is in the works and that the screenplay does actually include Spider-Man. Well, this is a storyline Sony execs were also high on long before partnering up with Marvel Studios and it sounds like this was their top choice for the first film starring the web-slinger.

Wisely, that didn't happen as it's a very dark, complex storyline which would have felt out of place in a movie that was meant to reintroduce this beloved character to moviegoers.

However, it's hard to escape the feeling that this might be what's next for Spider-Man on the big screen.

How Sony Planned To Outdo Marvel Studios

Something we see in many of the "Sony Hack" emails is apparent frustration over the fact that Marvel Studios is capable of producing fan-pleasing box office hits based on characters who aren't anywhere near as well-known as Spider-Man. However, the studio had some ideas about how they could outdo one upcoming release, in particular: Doctor Strange.

Sony's top choice to play Sandman in Sinister Six was Tom Hardy (an actor who had been eyed to play the Sorcerer Supreme) and, well, it's probably best if you hear this directly from the studio.

"He's gonna storm through London at the end like God-f***ing-zilla," reads one email. "That is not purple prose. He's going to be AS TALL AS A SKYSCRAPER in the third act of the movie. What does Dr. Strange have? Magic tricks? F*** you, magic tricks — we've got a skyscraper Tom Hardy knocking down buildings!!!!"

So yeah, they have some weird ideas about what fans want to see.

The Sinister Six's Roster

Sinister Six was supposed to be a major tentpole for Sony until Marvel Studios convinced them to shelve it (they couldn't talk them out of working on Venom, however).

The team was set to include Spider-Man alongside Doctor Octopus, The Vulture, Sandman, Mysterio, and Black Cat. Idris Elba, Francis McDormand, Byran Cranston, and Jackie Chan were wanted for undisclosed roles, as were Woody Harrelson, Channing Tatum, Joel Edgerton, and Jason Clarke. Chris O'Dowd, Michael Peña, Seth Rogen, and Danny McBride were eyed for a comedy role.

As for Black Cat, Sony had a surprisingly decent list of actresses in mind, including Ruth Wilson, Emily Blunt, Kerri Russell, Rose Byrne, Emilia Clarke, and Elizabeth Olsen.

Sony's Resentment Over Spider-Man's Merchandising Rights

This particular piece of information may very well shed some light on why Sony flat out refused to give Disney a larger slice of their Spidey pie. In an email complaining that it took them five years to get another Spider-Man movie in theaters after Spider-Man 3, it was noted that, "Disney will make $300M on Spidey merchandise this year alone. We won’t!"

When you take that into account, you really can't blame them for not wanting to give Disney 30% - 50% of the profits made from future movies - even if they were willing to contribute to the budget.

What do you guys think about Sony's past plans for Spider-Man? Let us know below and continue reading to check out what we think might come next for the hero in the "Spider-Verse"!

Fewer Spider-Man Comics And Less Merchandise

With the X-Men and Fantastic Four firmly in Fox's grasp, Marvel decided to stop making merchandise featuring the characters, and in the comic books, they tried and failed to have the Inhumans replace mutants and later got rid of the heroic foursome altogether.

That was done to hurt the movies and to stop creating new characters and stories they would then be able to profit from, all while Disney got nothing in return. Right now, Spider-Man is the star of countless ongoing and limited series' and with this partnership at an end, it's highly likely that Marvel Comics will scale things back and give the hero considerably less of the spotlight in future.

He won't disappear and they'll continue making merchandise they profit 100% from, but this news might not bode well for the hero's future, especially as it doesn't sound like the split has been an amicable one. Disney has no reason to help Sony, and while these discussions probably haven't taken place yet, don't be shocked if some of those comics soon start getting cancelled.

Spider-Man Vs. Venom/Kraven's Last Hunt

We know that Sony is desperate to have Spider-Man and Venom meet, and we also know that the Kraven the Hunter movie they're developing includes the wall-crawler and adapts "Kraven's Last Hunt." As a result, it's highly likely that they now take things in one or both of those directions.

A Spider-Man/Venom crossover is inevitable and was seemingly going to happen even if Spidey had remained part of the MCU.

As for Kraven, there's a strong desire among fans to see that character on the big screen, and combining their Spider-Man 3 plans with that spinoff could result in a movie that helps people get over the fact that Spider-Man can no longer assemble with the rest of The Avengers.

Miles Morales Meets Another Peter Parker

While Tom Holland's Spider-Man was part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the chances of him making a cameo appearance as Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse were slim. After all, how could he be dragged into another dimension and then not mention that during a movie like Avengers: Infinity War? As cool as it would have been, it simply would not have made sense.

Live-action Spider-Man movies starring the actor are bound to remain a priority for the studio, but there's now absolutely no reason why Miles Morales couldn't cross paths with this Peter Parker.

It goes without saying that Miles should remain the focus of his animated franchise and if Holland's Peter does appear, it should only be briefly. However, it would be silly of Sony not to take advantage of the fact they're now free to do whatever they like with Spidey.

Spider-Man Swings Into Those Spinoffs

Sony owns the rights to hundreds of characters from Spider-Man's world, and given the popularity of cinematic universes these days, no one can blame them for wanting to develop spinoffs.

That's a problem for many fans, though, as Spidey is integral to most of their origin stories, and watching an adventure revolving around characters like Black Cat or Venom just isn't as satisfying when they don't have Spider-Man to bounce off. Now, that's no longer an issue, and while it's probably too late for a cameo in Morbius, these worlds colliding is bound to happen down the line.

Whether that's a good or bad thing ultimately hinges on the quality of these planned spinoff movies.

Another Reboot?

Sony Pictures has said in a statement that they intend on continuing the story Marvel Studios started, but they once scheduled The Amazing Spider-Man 3 and 4 for release before scrapping those plans and teaming up with Kevin Feige and company.

It's not completely out of the realm of possibility that Sony will reboot the franchise with a new Spider-Man who can more neatly fit into franchises like Venom and Morbius.

That could be an older version of the wall-crawler who doesn't need an origin story because he's been a hero for years. That would be horrible for fans, as it obvioulsy means the current Spidey's story would end on a major cliffhanger, and it's hard to believe Sony would be that stupid...then again, it was the plan for Aunt May to get her own spinoff movie once upon a time!

Spider-Man On The Small Screen

It was recently revealed that Sony has teamed with Phil Lord and Chris Miller to bring Spider-Man's world to television. We have no idea whether those plans include the web-slinger or just characters from his world, but it's certainly feasible that Holland could be signed to a big money contract which would see him play Peter Parker across the big and small screens.

There's no way that Spidey would make a permanent leap to TV given the success of Spider-Man: Far From Home, but it would be pretty cool to see Holland at the centre of his own shared world.

In the past, we've heard that a studio like Sony would need permission to use a character like this on the small screen as well as the big, and that could be an issue for them given what's happened.

A New Director...And Lead Star?

It's been confirmed that Jon Watts has yet to sign up to direct the next Spider-Man movie and we don't know what the deal with Tom Holland's contract is right now. He may be locked in for more movies, or free to refuse to continue playing the webbed warrior without Marvel's involvement.

A new director being found is definitely possible if Watts decides he doesn't want to face the challenges that come with making a Spider-Man movie set outside of the MCU, and, well, Sony could always go ahead and recast Holland if it comes down to that.

That may sound a lot like the reboot we mentioned before, but if Marvel Studios can recast The Hulk and continue his story, then Sony can do the same with Spidey. Of course, that's not something anyone really wants to see from the character's future.

Miles Morales Makes His Live-Action Debut

Should Sony decide to take things in a completely different direction, we could finally see Miles Morales swing into a live-action setting. The animated version can continue to thrive, but Miles' debut would be something that generates a lot of positive buzz and could help angry fans come to terms with Spidey's new status quo.

Whether he should replace Peter is debatable, but benching that version of Spidey for a while might not be the worst idea, and Miles' movie could allude to him having gone on the run.

A "Spider-Men" team-up would be a guaranteed box office hit (especially now moviegoers have been introduced to Miles thanks to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) and this is bound to be something Sony has been mulling over for a while now. Time will tell whether it becomes a reality.

Things Get Worse For Spidey...

A worst case scenario for the web-slinger is that Avi Arad takes control of the Spider-Man franchise and runs it into the ground by throwing Venom and a host of other characters into the next movie to fulfil his own terrible fantasies.

Bear in mind that he promised an "Untold Story" with The Amazing Spider-Man movies which ended up being a convoluted mess, and his plans for the Sinister Six would have involved Norman Osborn's severed head and Harry Osborn recruiting a bunch of random people to wear Doctor Octopus' arms and The Vulture's wings rather than giving them proper origin stories.

So, yeah, with no more involvement from Feige, Spider-Man may very well be doomed...

...Or Better!

Spider-Man can survive without the MCU, and while Venom may have been panned by critics and many hardcore comic book fans, it was a box office hit and a real crowd-pleaser. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, meanwhile, is widely considered the best Spider-Man movie to date!

With that in mind, there's no reason to think Sony hasn't learned from past mistakes and they may very well be capable of continuing the story of this Spider-Man in some exciting ways.

Sure, it's going to be awkward ignoring the MCU and everything Peter Parker went through, but a strong script can work around that and Sony may still do the hero justice.

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219 Comments

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TheOverseer - 9/28/2019, 2:56 AM

Good riddance. MCU version of Spidey was torrid.

whynot - 9/28/2019, 5:52 AM

@TheOverseer - lol I don’t think you’ll get your wish spiderman still gonna have that MCU movie after this solo outting so I think it’s not gonna be a definitive farewell in his movie. And I doubt they will do it in Fantastic four or whatever MCU move they are planning. They aren’t gonna wrap his arc up in someone else’s movie. It’s likely his movie will come out first.

ShimmyShimmyYA - 9/28/2019, 6:31 AM

@TheOverseer - what exactly is so bad about it?

jj2112 - 9/28/2019, 7:08 AM

@ShimmyShimmyYA - I think it depends on the version of Spidey you grew up with. In my case it was a Peter in his 20s, full of wit, peniless and fighting street-level villains like Hobgoblin and the Maggia. The MCU version is just a boy.

ShimmyShimmyYA - 9/28/2019, 7:32 AM

@jj2112 - if the deal didn’t fall apart I’m sure that was the plan. I grew up based on the 90s show but It’s different to see the high school version that was really only shown to people in the 60/70

jj2112 - 9/28/2019, 7:50 AM

@ShimmyShimmyYA - He was a teenager but the way he was written by Stan Lee it felt almost like an adult. He was always burdened with responsibility.

ShimmyShimmyYA - 9/28/2019, 7:57 AM

@jj2112 - I mean he’s burdened with responsibility in the MCU. My point is fans complained about spider man , got the spider man they were complaining they wanted to have and now hate it. Basically fans are nuts

LongMayHeReign - 9/28/2019, 8:20 AM

@ShimmyShimmyYA - Feige was indeed quoted saying that he envisioned Spider-man taking the Harry Potter approach in that the audience would watch him grow from a child to a man throughout 6-8 films. Unfortunately Sony wants to force a Spider-verse down our throats effectively stunting Peter's growth that Feige envisioned.

CaptCoulson - 9/28/2019, 3:00 AM

Well the fact that even though it was joyously brought back, only being done so for two more movies (1 solo/1 other) itself was a pretty clear statement on it being only a temporary reprieve.

Doomsday8888 - 9/28/2019, 3:01 AM

He learned his lesson.
Wise decision.

I still can't believe they ended 2 Spidey movies with a cliffhanger, maybe 3 if we count IW.
Not like they did something useful or interesting with May learning Pete's identity, but still...

So much for being Kev's favorite Spidey moment, huh?