The clumsy teenager of the world’s largest movie franchise was announced to be leaving the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) on August 20th, 2019. A shock to all the Spidey fans, as the Spider-Man movies are some of the best selling titles in the franchise, both landing in the top ten and making over $800,000 in three years for the first film and in only two months for the second film.
On that dreaded night of August, word got out that Sony had failed to reach an agreement with Disney over the finances and profit behind the Spider-Man films. All fingers pointed to Sony, blaming them for not cooperating with Disney, but as more and more information got out, it was found that the deal was declined because of the aggression by Disney to get maximum profit from the license deal, continuing to act as the money vacuum many see Disney as already.
Sony attempted to make a better deal but Disney refused to compromise and Sony would not take the gruesome 50/50 deal Disney proposed. While a 50/50 split may seem fair, Spider-Man is Sony’s license and Disney is only using it with their permission. Therefore, if Sony feels that they are being treated unfairly, they have every right to pull Spider-Man away from Disney, somewhat like taking a toy from snobby toddler who refuses to share.
While the ‘Disney Propaganda’ was successful at first, many have decided to side with Sony against the movie monopolist Disney has become.
Even Tom Holland, the actor who played Spider-Man agrees; after hearing the news of Spider-Man’s departure he said, “I really am nothing but grateful,” talking about his time as Spider-Man. However, he’s also conveyed, “the legacy and future of Spidey rests in Sony’s safe hands.”
This separation spells chaos for both companies and for the fans, but the biggest loser in this failed negotiation is Disney. Not only were two future MCU Spider-Man movies planned, but losing the permission to use his character also creates major plot holes.
These holes in the story go deep, beyond just the Spider-Man movies; they also affect the future of numerous other MCU movies as well, not to mention any cameos that were written for him, for example a possible appearance in the sequel to Doctor Strange. These plot holes and the loss of a fan favorite hero will only lead to less and less people seeing future Marvel Films.
Sony played the right game with this deal. The last movie, Spider-Man: Far From Home, earned a total revenue of $1.1 billion, making it Sony’s largest movie title of all time. To give up half of that revenue would be foolish.
So while this may be a heartbreak to all those who were looking forward to a third MCU Spider-Man movie, as Tom Holland and many Spidey fans have expressed, the character is in good hands with Sony. The future of Spider-Man is uncertain, but it is promising to see its owners are smart with their titles, not giving it away to any suspicious characters.
