Marvel Studios will make history in 2016 when they bring Spider-Man into the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Captain America: Civil War. Sony Pictures hold the rights to the character, but following the disappointing critical and commercial performance of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and the “Sony Hack,” they had no other choice than to turn to Kevin Feige for help.
Talking at a recent Q&A to promote the release of Avengers: Age of Ultron, the Marvel Studios President reflected on what it was like to make that happen.
“Making that agreement … was great, and was really amazing, and on a personal level making these movies, it means a lot because I think we can do great things with Spider-Man. I think Spider-man can serve great purpose in our universe and that’s where he belongs. That was what was unique about him in the comics was not that he was the only superhero in the world; it’s that he was a totally different kind of superhero when compared against all the other ones in the Marvel universe at the time.”
However, there was always a chance that the deal wouldn’t be made, but Marvel being Marvel, they of course had a backup plan if they couldn’t use Spider-Man:
“This has been a dream of ours for a long time. We always had contingency plans, which we always do anyway. Are we going to be able to make another deal with this actor? If so, we’re going to do this; if not, we’re going to do this. If we get the rights to a certain character, that’s great; we’re going to do this. If not, we’re going to do this. We always sort of operate under those various alternate timelines available and ready to shift if something happens.”
The conversation then turned to where Spider-Man has actually been up until this point and how he’s going to feature into the wider Marvel Cinematic Universe.
[zergpaid]While Tom Holland’s Peter Parker will have a key role in Captain America: Civil War and no doubt Avengers: Infinity War as well, Feige was quick to point out that their priority is making his solo movie work.
“It’s not about when you show up, it’s about what you do once you’re there. The most important thing as a standalone is relaunching Spider-Man in his own standalone movie with his own storylines that fits into this universe. That is job number one for us. … The connectivity is great, but it doesn’t drive the train.”
With all this talk of Spider-Man, where does that leave Cap? After all, Captain America: Civil War is supposed to be his movie, and that’s still the case says Feige:
“There were a lot of characters in The Winter Soldier, but it felt like a very singular and relatively simple thriller. Civil War follows in that same way. I think that’s something [directors Joe and Anthony Russo] pride themselves on, and our screenwriters Chris Markus and Steve McFeely are excellent at giving each character just enough. They’re not full arcs for everybody; it’s just enough that their presence is felt and important, but that the very clear single story that is being told is being served at all times.”
Tell us, what are you most looking forward to seeing from Spider-Man when he enters the Marvel Cinematic Universe next year? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!