Yes. Those leaked emails following the Sony hack were hinting at something real, and something which is now official. Following the critical and audience panning of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Sony have looked at their options with the friendly neighbourhood superhero and decided not to make a third film, not to reboot the franchise again, but to come to agreement with Marvel Studios, allowing them the rights to use Spider-Man within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
It’s news which has been eagerly awaited by comic-book fans since even before the release of the first Avengers movie (as Spidey does team up with The Avengers in the comics), and while it’s now far too late to see Peter Parker popping up in Age Of Ultron it does mean he’ll not only show up down the line, but be guided by Marvel; the studio which so far has a flawless record of bringing its comic-book heroes to the big screen.
Not only continuing to control the rights to the character, Sony will still retain creative control, and place its own staff on a stand-alone, Sony-produced, Spider-Man movie (now scheduled for release on July 28th 2017). However Marvel’s Kevin Fiege will now become heavily involved with the web-slinger (alongside Sony’s Amy Pascal), in order to take him in a new creative direction.
While a new actor hasn’t been confirmed, it’s all but a certainty Andrew Garfield will be replaced before Spider-Man pops up in the MCU (likely in next year’s Captain America: Civil War, as he’s heavily featured within the comic arc), and gets his first new movie; which at this point could be anything from yet another origin story, to a stand-alone tale with an elder Parker.
Kevin Fiege had this to say about the landmark deal:
I am thrilled to team with my friends at Sony Pictures along with Amy Pascal to produce the next Spider-Man movie. Amy has been deeply involved in the realisation 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.
Matt Wheeldon – @TheMattWheeldon.
Source: Marvel.
