Well, the deal is now done. Let the speculation continue!! After rumors have been going around for months, Disney and Sony Pictures have finally struck a deal to bring Spider-Man into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as part of an unspecified film. Will it be 2018's Avengers: Infinity War as many expect? Or is there still time to get the wallcrawler on board for Captain America: Civil War, which doesn't arrive until May 2016?
So what does this mean for Sony's floundering The Amazing Spider-Man franchise? Well, it's still moving ahead, and after Spidey's appearance in the MCU he'll go back to Sony for a feature film set for July 28th 2017 that Marvel Studios will co-produce. Will it be The Amazing Spider-Man 3? Or is Andrew Garfield out and the plan is starting over from scratch? Could the Marvel film be used as a springboard to a brand new franchise? Is Marvel really running the show at this point? Just that Sony was willing to strike this kind of deal suggests that Marvel may be taking control from here on out, despite the official statement claiming otherwise.
We also may be seeing some Marvel characters crossing over into Sony's films as part of this new arrangement.
In the meantime, Marvel has shifted four release dates in the wake of this news. Thor: Ragnarok will now open on November 3, 2017; Black Panther is set for July 6th, 2018, Captain Marvel on November 2nd 2018 and Inhumans on July 12, 2019.
HUGE news all around. Check out the complete press release below!
Sony Pictures Entertainment and Marvel Studios announced today that Sony is bringing Marvel into the amazing world of Spider-Man.
Under the deal, the new Spider-Man will first appear in a Marvel film from Marvel's Cinematic Universe (MCU). Sony Pictures will thereafter release the next installment of its $4 billion Spider-Man franchise, on July 28, 2017, in a film that will be co-produced by Kevin Feige and his expert team at Marvel and Amy Pascal, who oversaw the franchise launch for the studio 13 years ago. Together, they will collaborate 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.
Marvel and Sony Pictures are also exploring opportunities to integrate characters from the MCU into future Spider-Man films.
The new relationship follows a decade of speculation among fans about whether Spider-Man – who has always been an integral and important part of the larger Marvel Universe in the comic books – could become part of the Marvel Universe on the big screen. Spider-Man has more than 50 years of history in Marvel's world, and with this deal, fans will be able to experience Spider-Man taking his rightful place among other Super Heroes in the MCU.
"I am thrilled to team with my friends at Sony Pictures along with Amy Pascal to produce the next Spider-Man movie," said Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige. "Amy has been deeply involved in the realization on film of one of the world’s most beloved characters. Marvel's involvement will hopefully deliver the creative continuity and authenticity that fans demand from the MCU. I am equally excited for the opportunity to have Spider-Man appear in the MCU, something which both we at Marvel, and fans alike, have been looking forward to for years."
Spider-Man, embraced all over the world, is the most successful franchise in the history of Sony Pictures, with the five films having taken in more than $4 billion worldwide.
