Earlier this week, Deadline unleashed a hellish storm over the digital waves, reporting that Sony and Disney had ended their business relationship together over a financial standoff. From what we understand, the House of Mouse had requested a 50/50 split in grosses for all future Spider-Man films – a 45% leap up from what it had been – and when Sony inevitably refused, they also booted Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige from producing the hero’s next two films in any capacity.
Given that the two companies’ most recent collaboration, Far From Home, recently broke the $1 billion mark at the box office – a Spidey first – news of this business divorce was totally unexpected. But according to a new report from Variety, negotiations have been up for discussion since the beginning of the year, about six months ago. Insiders from both sides of the film aisle have been pointing their fingers, debating and refuting exactly which studio brought down the axe.
And while a lot of numbers have been floating around, Disney’s aforementioned 50/50 request has become the narrative’s main pillar. However, Variety explains that Sony Pictures chief Tom Rothman was willing to offer upwards of 25% of the franchise and officially welcomed the House of Mouse as a co-financing partner in exchange for Feige’s creative services. As we all know though, Disney declined.
What’s strangely frustrating about this whole endeavor is that even if the two companies are unable to salvage a new film deal, the characteristics of the original negotiations – with Disney owning all licensing rights to the superhero – mean that Spider-Man can, and will more than likely, still appear at Disney World, but not in the MCU.
With that said, the Mouse House is rumored to be making a new deal with Sony before D23 this weekend – one that could potentially see Venom join the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And as that clock quickly winds down, be sure to check in on We Got This Covered for further updates on Spider-Man’s fate.
