One of the biggest stories of 2019 was the very public negotiations between Sony and Disney over the film rights to the Marvel hero, Spider-Man. After “Spider-Man: Far From Home” was released, the original deal between the studios was fulfilled and it appeared (for a month, at least) that Sony was going to work on its own Spidey films without Marvel Studios’ help. Alas, a deal was struck and Spider-Man will continue his MCU appearances for at least the near future.
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And in a new THR Roundtable discussion, two executives from Sony and Disney (Tom Rothman and Alan Horn, respectively) talk about the negotiations last year and how the future might pan out for the two studios and Marvel’s most popular hero.
“The fanbase, which is important to all of us, seemed to really respond to what Tom [Holland] and [the ‘Spider-Man’ crew] had done before,” said Disney’s Horn. “And they like it. They like the fact that the MCU and Kevin Feige were involved. And we heard feedback out there that suggested joining forces once again was probably a really good idea.”
Of course, the deal that was made is reportedly only good for two films—one more ‘Spider-Man’ sequel and a future MCU film that can feature the character. That means that fans are still anxiously awaiting news as to whether Sony and Disney can strike a new deal that extends a bit longer and promises more Spidey in the MCU. For Sony boss, Tom Rothman, he’s hopeful a new deal can be struck, but he warns that people need to take heed about worrying about the negotiation, as reported by news outlets.
“I hope so,” said Rothman. “I think this was a classic win-win-win. I think it was a win for Sony. I think it was a win for Disney. I think it was a win for fans and moviegoers. The only thing I would say about that is that news cycles and the rhythm of negotiations don’t necessarily overlap…I think we would have gotten there and the news got ahead of some things.”
So, maybe we can all learn from the Spidey Crisis of 2019? Probably not. Inevitably, the news will leak. It will hit the fanbase, and folks are going to react. But hey, that’s the drama we live for, right?
‘Spider-Man 3’ (or whatever it’s going to be called) will arrive in theaters on July 16, 2021.
