Spider-Man may one day return to the MCU, but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen any time soon. According to our sources – the same ones who told us a She-Hulk and Ms. Marvel TV series were on the way, both of which were confirmed last night – the two sides are still not close to striking a deal. Sony reportedly wants $10 billion for the rights to the web-slinger. And Disney, despite all of the money they’ve made from Peter Parker, isn’t interested in paying that price.
While this may sound like a steep amount, it’s really not when put into the perspective of how much the Mouse House generates per year. It’s important to remember that these guys are basically printing money with all of their live-action features, animated films, Pixar movies, Star Wars installments and Marvel flicks. It’s not like the company doesn’t have the finances to pull this kind of a deal off. They just don’t want to.
It’s also becoming increasingly clear that Disney may be to blame for this unpopular fallout. Kevin Smith might not want to admit it, but every story that comes out about these failed negotiations seems to make Sony look like the good guy. The corporation is trying their best to appease the executives at the House of Mouse by continually offering settlements that satisfy both parties. They even suggested that Disney could own 25% of the Spider-Man series going forward, as opposed to the 5% they used to have, which was promptly declined and countered with an egregious 50/50 split.
The truth of the matter is though that the outraged fans really don’t care who deserves fault in the situation. They just want Peter Parker back in the MCU. Todd McFarlane doesn’t think that’s ever going to happen and, unless one of the two companies buckles under pressure, he may be right. Hopefully though, something can be worked out in the near future. If not, then audiences will just have to get used to an Avengers squad without Spider-Man.
