Having already grossed $287.7 million worldwide, it’s unclear if “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” will get anywhere near the $850+ million gross of the original, but given the global pandemic, it still feels like another feather in Sony Pictures‘ cap, establishing that they can make a lot of money off the Marvel brand, even without direct help from Marvel Studios. And there are more of their Spiderverse films on the way. The next big Sony project will be the “Spider-Man” spinoff “Morbius,” starring Oscar-winner Jared Leto on January 28, 2022, but even more, has been announced for 2023.
“Kraven The Hunter” is already set for a release date of January 13, 2023, with director J.C. Chandor (“Triple Frontier“) and British actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson (“Tenet,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron“) attached. That’s not all, as two more dates for Sony/Marvel films have been added to the 2023 slate with spots etched out for June 23 and October 6, according to THR reporter Aaron Couch in a tweet (see below).
The best assumption is that one of those films will be “Venom 3” (October 6, 2023, makes the most sense), along with another contender being director Olivia Wilde’s untitled Spiderverse project, which is reportedly going to be a “Spider-Woman” movie. The latter had been announced for development just before Wilde started shooting her thriller “Don’t Worry Darling,” starring rising young talent like Florence Pugh and Harry Styles.
Another possible film could be “Morbius 2,” but unlike with the other two movies mentioned above, but there haven’t been any signs of development, and the studio would likely need to see box office returns before even considering that. Another possibility is a direct “Venom Vs. Spider-Man,” as it appears this is the kind of franchise event Sony wants to build within their own universe, again, without the direct assistance of Marvel’s MCU characters.
Before Marvel got involved with the franchise, Sony had been developing a “Sinister Six” film with Drew Goddard (“Cabin In The Woods,” “The Martian,” “Bad Times At The El Royale“) set to write/direct. That exact supervillain group, or members of it, are seemingly being assembled for “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” but we don’t know if Sony plans on solo film for that group.
It feels weird that Sony Pictures would rush into “Spider-Man 4,” however, there are already signs that director Jon Watts is moving away from the “Spider-Man” franchise — he’s attached to the “Fantastic Four” reboot for Marvel Studios. And it’s still unknown, officially, if Marvel will stay on as a co-producer on subsequent solo installments even with the post-credit scene in “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” alluding to a future MCU crossover.
Sony plotting the next “Spider-Man” film without a new director isn’t hard to imagine since Tom Holland has already described “Spider-Man: No Way Home” as the “end of a franchise.” It would not surprise if Holland goes back to the Sony Spidverse for a few years and then comes back to the MCU after they’ve built up their own universe.
This release date news comes after Marvel Studios adjusted their own 2022-2023 release calendar, and it’s not inconceivable that Disney changed things around in 2023 because they got a heads-up on these upcoming Sony projects.
Sony’s upcoming Spiderverse film dates
- Morbius – January 28, 2022
- Kraven The Hunter – January 13, 2023
- Untitled Sony/Marvel film – June 23, 2023
- Untitled Sony/Marvel film – October 6, 2023.