Disney Sony Standoff Ends Spiderman within MCU
We might not see actor Tom Holland in new Marvel movies, because a fresh deal can't be reached over the character.
Spiderman’s film rights are owned by Sony, and he was able to appear in the Marvel films, like Avengers: Endgame, because of a deal between Sony and Marvel – owned by Disney.
Spiderman is a Marvel comic book character, but the film rights were bought in 1999 by Sony. They made five films with the character, three with Tobey Maguire and two with Andrew Garfield.
In 2015, a deal was made with Disney and Marvel Studios, to bring Spiderman back to the MCU. This meant that Disney would be co-producers and share the profits of films with Sony featuring Spiderman.
It is being reported that Disney and Sony are unable to reach terms on the funding for future films, and during Comic-Con last month no Spiderman movies were announced for the next phase of the MCU.
This does mean that Kevin Feige (the producer and President of Marvel Films) would be stepping away from the franchise. Sony tweeted that they are “disappointed but respect Disney’s decision not to have him continue as a lead producer of the next Spiderman live action film.”
Sources from the “Deadline” website, maintain that Feige’s exit was about money; it was about Disney seeking the 50/50 co-fi stake as the price for Marvel and Feige’s continued guiding hand that resulted in the delivery of Sony’s biggest grossing film ever. Sony declined to meet those terms. It was an aggressive stance by Disney, which already owns the merchandise on Spider-Man, and a tough nut for Sony to swallow, giving up half of its most valuable franchise. But had Sony agreed to Disney’s terms, Marvel and Feige would not have withdrawn from the Spider-Man films, sources said.
