As a seasoned observer of the comic book world and its cinematic adaptations, I must say that the ever-evolving landscape of Sony’s Spider-Man Universe is nothing short of captivating. Each character, each project, and every twist and turn has left me in awe.
25 years ago, I was there when Marvel handed over the rights to Spider-Man for a cool $7 million to Sony Pictures Entertainment. This marked the beginning of their journey into the live-action Spider-Man world, which made its debut on the big screen in 2002, followed by sequels and even a live-action TV series. They also gained control over more than 900 Marvel characters. Interestingly enough, Sony was offered the opportunity to buy Marvel’s entire movie rights portfolio (excluding X-Men and Fantastic Four) for a mere $25 million, but they chose to decline it. This is how Sony’s Marvel Universe came into existence, later known as the “Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters” and then simply as “Sony’s Spider-Man Universe.
In 1999, John Calley, who was the Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment, stated that Spider-Man is thought to be the most exceptional franchise yet to be tapped into.
The Tangled Web of Sony’s Spider-Man Universe
Following the establishment of Marvel Studios in 2008, which marked the beginning of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the release of Iron Man, Sony began to disentangle its character universe around the same period that Marvel Studios’ The Avengers earned an impressive $1.5 billion at the box office.
Columbia’s successful Spider-Man trilogy amassed approximately $2.5 billion from 2002 to 2007, but when Sam Raimi’s planned fourth installment didn’t come together for its 2011 launch, Sony decided to relaunch the series as The Amazing Spider-Man. The 2012 reboot generated $758 million, and although 2014’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2 only grossed $709 million, Sony and Marvel eventually struck a deal: to incorporate Spider-Man (portrayed by Tom Holland) into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
In this arrangement, Sony retained the rights to the Spider-Man films, yet they collaborated with Marvel Studios in a mutually profitable agreement. This partnership enabled Spider-Man’s appearance in movies such as Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame (2018 and 2019 respectively), which were produced and financed by Disney, and Homecoming, Far From Home (2017 and 2019), and No Way Home (2021), which were produced by Sony but co-produced with Marvel Studios.
Initially, the studio intended to establish its own cinematic universe through “The Amazing Spider-Man 2”, but they ultimately decided to collaborate with Marvel instead. Later, Sony began their Cinematic Spider-Man Universe (SSU) in 2018 with “Venom”, a spinoff featuring Tom Hardy as the lead character. This new universe was set up to be a shared one, however, it did not include the actual appearance of Spider-Man himself.
Following the massive $856 million earnings of Venom, Sony started creating a collection of movies based on Marvel characters from the Spider-Man universe, such as Morbius, Silk, Black Cat, Silver Sable, Jackpot, Nightwatch, El Muerto, Madame Web, and Kraven the Hunter. However, only about half of these projects were eventually brought to the screen with varying levels of success. Now, it seems that Sony’s ambitious cinematic universe based on these characters is as lifeless as Uncle Ben, Peter Parker’s deceased relative.
As a diehard fan of the web-slinger, I’m diving into the upcoming (and yet to be realized) ventures within Sony’s expansive Spider-Man universe. Here’s what we know so far!
The Sinister Six
In 2013, Sony established a team to grow the universe connected with its Spider-Man series. They aimed to create a consistent feel across the movies and had planned The Amazing Spider-Man 3 for a June 10, 2016 release, along with spin-offs focusing on Venom and The Sinister Six.
The team consisting of director Marc Webb, producers Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach, writers Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, Jeff Pinkner, Ed Solomon (who wrote for Men in Black), and Drew Goddard (director of The Cabin in the Woods) were brought together by Sony to further develop the rebooted Spider-Man franchise.
Following the confrontations between Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield) and his adversaries Electro (Jamie Foxx), Green Goblin (Dane DeHaan), and Rhino (Paul Giamatti), it was hinted at the end of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 that Doctor Octopus, Mysterio, and the Vulture would ultimately join the roster of villains known as the Sinister Six.
Previously, we’ve treated each movie as its own standalone story, but with this new development, we can expand the series by thinking about how the story might progress in the future and creating a connected narrative. This is what Doug Belgrad from Sony Pictures expressed back then.
The initial lineup consisted of movies like The Amazing Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man 4, along with Venom and a Goddard-directed Sinister Six, initially set for release on November 11, 2016. Unfortunately, the third and fourth installments of The Amazing Spider-Man were scrapped, Venom was reimagined in a separate universe, and Sinister Six has been stuck in production limbo ever since. However, Sony executives remain optimistic about the formation of the Six, particularly following Spider-Man: No Way Home, which gathered five Spidey villains from various realities: Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina), Electro (Jamie Foxx), Sandman (Thomas Haden Church), and the Lizard (Rhys Ifans).
As confirmed by Amy Pascal, producer of the Spider-Man and Spider-Verse series, and Sanford Panitch, President of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, Sony continues to develop the Sinister Six movie. The prospective team members could be Tom Hardy’s Venom, Jared Leto’s Morbius, Michael Keaton’s Vulture, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Kraven. Notably, Alessandro Nivola’s Rhino will be hunted by Kraven in the upcoming Kraven the Hunter, set for release on December 13th.
Nightwatch
By 2017, it was revealed that the studio was delving into their collection of Marvel characters linked to Spider-Man and working on a new project called Nightwatch. This lesser-known character has been featured approximately a dozen times in Spider-Man comics, with Dr. Kevin Trench being the main character. He wore a futuristic nanotechnological battlesuit as an older version of himself from the future. During his brief stint as a crime-fighter, Nightwatch collaborated with Spider-Man and cyborgs Cardiac and Deathlok.
Ed Ricourt, known for his work on ‘Now You See Me’ (2013) and an episode of ‘Marvel’s Jessica Jones’, initially drafted the script for Nightwatch which was later revised by Cheo Hodari Coker, the showrunner of ‘Luke Cage’. In March 2018, it was reported that Spike Lee, renowned director of films like ‘Do the Right Thing’ and ‘BlacKkKlansman’, was considering Nightwatch. However, by October of the same year, Lee denied any involvement with Nightwatch. Since then, there have been no further updates on the project.
Jackpot
2018 saw reports that Sony was working on various spinoffs within the Spider-Man Universe, including the female-led series “Jackpot.” Originally introduced during the “Brand New Day” storyline in 2008’s Amazing Spider-Man #546, when Marvel rebooted the title to focus on a now solo Peter Parker (who had been married to Mary Jane Watson for many years).
Intriguingly enough, I initially thought the fiery-haired protagonist was none other than Mary Jane, the woman who playfully declared Peter Parker had struck it rich when they first met. But as events unfolded, it was revealed that she was Alana Jacobson, a woman who acquired the Jackpot identity from Sara Ehret, who registered with the Superhuman Registration Act during the tumultuous times of Civil War. Taking up the mantle and name of Jackpot, Alana employed Mutant Growth Hormones and various drugs to grant herself superhuman prowess, such as extraordinary strength and swiftness.
In a statement made in 2018, Sanford Panitch, president of Columbia Pictures, commented that Spider-Man interacts with numerous characters. These include villains, heroes, and antiheroes, many of whom are female characters, each one well-rounded, fully developed, and distinctly individual.
Untitled Roberto Orci Movie
In the year 2020, news surfaced that Roberto Orci was penning a film set within Sony’s Spider-Man universe. This movie was said to originate from an unique segment of the Marvel universe which Sony holds rights to. Orci had previously contributed significantly to Sony’s Spider-Man team and was announced as a co-writer for The Amazing Spider-Man 3 and Venom in 2013. However, the project conceived by Orci never saw the light of day, leaving us guessing about the characters that would have been featured.
Untitled Olivia Wilde Sony/Marvel Project
In the same year, Sony selected Olivia Wilde (known for “Booksmart” and “Don’t Worry Darling”) to direct a potential Spider-Woman movie. Aja Finnan-Luke, who has produced both live-action and animated Spider-Man films, was announced as the producer with Rachel O’Connor (from “Challengers”) serving as executive producer. The project was labeled as a top priority for Sony.
El Muerto
The character known as El Muerto is no longer set to play the lead role in an upcoming movie. In 2022, it was announced that Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny would headline this film following his appearance in Sony’s Bullet Train alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Originally named Juan-Carlos Sánchez, El Muerto has only appeared in two comics: Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #6-7. This lucha libre wrestler with superhuman strength, who gained his powers from his mask, was initially slated for a standalone movie on January 12, 2024. However, due to scheduling conflicts, Bad Bunny withdrew from the project in 2023. Despite this, Sony continues to develop El Muerto without him.
Hypno-Hustler
A former tough street kid transformed into a criminal donning a costume, the Hypno-Hustler wields hypnotic glasses during his live disco performances to induce mass hypnosis, followed by theft from the audience. First appearing in issue #24 of Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man in 1978, this character has had limited appearances and is often viewed as a joke. However, recent news reports suggest that Sony and multi-talented Donald Glover (also known as Childish Gambino) are teaming up on an unnamed Hypno-Hustler movie set within the SSU universe.
Silver & Black: Silver Sable and Black Cat
Sony had been working on a project featuring the duo known as Black Cat and Silver Sable, but progress halted. Despite this, producer Pascal maintained that the project, written and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, was still alive. However, in 2018, it was announced that Sony was instead working on individual movies for both characters, namely Black Cat and Silver Sable.
In an interview with Variety that year, Panitch expressed his conviction that Black Cat possesses a distinctive personality backed by an engaging history and a rich body of work, making her worthy of having her own movie.
In an update from 2020, Prince-Bythewood expressed her continued affection for the project and optimism that it might find a way to move forward. Initially, she had envisioned it as a two-person endeavor, but later decided to split the roles. A new idea has emerged about turning it into a Disney+ limited series, but her preference remains to see it as a film starring both individuals. So, she’s keeping her fingers crossed that the project might still come to fruition one day.
Silk: Spider-Society
2022 saw Sony disclose their plans for creating a collection of live-action TV shows that would be broadcast on MGM+ and Amazon Prime Video, among which is an action-packed live-action series based on ‘Silk,’ produced by the mastermind behind ‘The Walking Dead,’ Angela Kang.
Titled “Silk: Web of Shadows” and focusing on the character of Cindy Moon – a Korean-American teenager who shares a link with the same radioactive spider that affected Peter Parker, and has since been a prominent figure in Marvel’s various “Spider-Verse” comic book collaborations – this series would narrate Cindy’s journey as she breaks free from captivity, seeks out her lost family, and eventually evolves into the superhero known as Silk. However, this series by Pascal and producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who worked on the animated “Spider-Verse”, was canceled in May 2024. At present, Sony and Amazon-MGM are producing a live-action series titled “Spider-Noir” starring Nicolas Cage, who lent his voice to a Spider-Man Noir character in the 2018 film “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”.
The upcoming film, titled “Kraven the Hunter,” represents the next (possibly concluding) chapter in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe. In this movie, Aaron Taylor-Johnson takes on the role of the well-known Spider-Man adversary, Kraven, alongside Ariana DeBose as Calypso, Fred Hechinger as the Chameleon, Christopher Abbott as Foreigner, Alessandro Nivola as Rhino, and Russell Crowe as Nikolai Kravinoff, Kraven’s father. The adult-oriented “Kraven the Hunter” will be available exclusively in cinemas starting December 13.
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2024-12-11 01:42