Tom Holland may never suit up as 'Spider-Man' again with the Sony-Marvel partnership ending on a bitter note
With Marvel and Sony failing to agree to come to a mutual consensus over licensing and profits with 'Spider-Man', we may never see Tom Holland suit up as the epic web-slinging superhero again. In a statement released by Sony, the studio expressed disappointment over the decision.
Marvel and Sony's inability to reach common ground over the past few months eventually led to this decision, according to Variety.
Pity that this had to come at a time when Marvel's last two films, 'Avengers: Endgame' and 'Spider-Man: Far From Home' have been raking in the moolah. 'Far From Home' was a BO success after pipping 'Skyfall' to become the all-time highest-grossing film for Sony Pictures.
According to Deadline's sources there are two more Spidey films in the pipeline featuring Holland and director, Jon Watts. However, Marvel Studios President, Kevin Feige won't be the lead creative producer for these.
Here's the issue in a nutshell. Disney has asked the co-financing arrangement to be a 50-50 deal between the studios for all future Spider-Man movies, a demand that Sony flatly refused. While they did come back to the table with a few alternatives, Disney wasn't okay with the other offers. Plus, Sony didn't want to share its biggest and possibly its best franchise, and Disney was not interested in extending the current deal where Marvel receives in the range of 5% of first-dollar gross.
Frankly, Sony may have to punch well above its weight if it decides to replicate the success of the previous two Spider-Man films without Marvel. Feige and Marvel Studios, however, have enough other material in the form of the X-Men universe thanks to the Fox acquisition, the upcoming Phase 4 and the slate of Disney+ series.
Marvel's purple patch continues unabated after dishing out 23 popular superhero films. Each rated as a success on both fronts— commercially and critically. Feige has an impeccable track record to his credit and it's essential that Sony and Disney somehow arrive at a mutually-acceptable conclusion to ensure a bright future for the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
Tom Holland was introduced into the MCU in an appearance in 'Captain America: Civil War' and that has sparked a win-win for both studios. Soon after, Sony rebooted the franchise with 'Spider-Man: Homecoming' with Marvel, and the movie grossed $880 million worldwide. This was followed by Holland becoming one of the important characters in the last two Avengers films and a sequel to 'Homecoming'. Again, all of which were staggering commercial successes.
What Marvel did was give Spidey a chance to be part of something larger. For years a Spider-Man-joining-the-Avengers theme was talked about and finally that wish came true. The last two Avengers films also skyrocketed Holland as a superhero, might we say, he even pipped Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield (no hard feelings there!) to become an instant fan-favorite. In Holland, Marvel introduced a boyish and plucky Spidey. Remember the time people cried when he was snapped away in 'Infinity War' and returned in 'Endgame' amidst whoops and cheers?
Marvel gave the world a Spider-Man that was needed. They made him part of a larger universe and ended 'Far From Home' in a way suggesting that there was more the web-slinger could do in the MCU.
However, since the question here is money. Let's have a look at the numbers. The Tobey Maguire trilogy made $821mn, $795mn and $894mn respectively. The Garfield-starrer, 'The Amazing Spider-Man' and its sequel earned $757mn and $708mn while Holland's movies have grossed $880mn and $1.1bn. (WorldWide BO Figures courtesy The Numbers)
Again, Marvel did what it does best. It took Spider-Man's gross two levels higher by making it touch the billion mark. So why derail the money train? It has chugged well thus far hasn't it?
We aren't saying Sony is wrong, they do have their own creative template and that saw success with 'Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse'. With a 'Venom' sequel in the works, they might be tempted to bring in Holland and carry on from there. However, this is like handing over your best race car driver to a different team and starting from scratch.
We guess it's time the two studios have another sitdown.