Like the superhero he is, Tom Holland has done the impossible and saved the day once again, uniting Sony and Marvel for at least a little while longer. When times looked darkest and despair threatened to overwhelm fans of the MCU, our favorite Spiderman swung in to the rescue.
Ever since Avengers: Endgame released back in April, fans have been taking stock of the new Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) landscape. Spoilers, but rest in peace Tony, Steve and Natasha. These were some of the heavy hitters of the MCU, and while there are a few fan-favorites still intact, such as Black Panther and Captain Marvel, it’s undeniable that many people are uncertain about the future of the franchise. To many of these fans, the mind-set became “well, at least we still have Spiderman”.
Well, we nearly lost him too.
Before the MCU existed, Marvel didn’t make their own movies. Instead, they would sell the rights to certain characters to other large studios, such as Sony or Fox, and those other studios would create the movies and reap the profits. If you’ve ever seen any of the X-men movies, those are all Fox movies and therefore are not part of the MCU in any way. Of course, eventually Marvel decided to create their own studio and began producing the line-up we all know and love today.
The snag with Spiderman specifically lay in the fact that pre-MCU Marvel had sold the rights to Spiderman movies to Sony Studios, which means that they weren’t allowed to use his character in any of their MCU movies. However, Marvel and Sony struck a deal: they would work together for a time, allowing Sony to benefit from Marvel’s massive fan base while Marvel attains access to one of their most beloved characters.
The Spiderman collaboration is widely viewed as an outstanding success; the Vulture and Mysterio are nuanced and fascinating villains (especially with villains being an Achilles’ heel for the MCU) and the cast has made this reiteration of Spiderman, more so than any other, feel like a genuine high schooler. But just when Peter Parker really started to hit his stride, the real world bumbled in to foul the waters, and Sony and Marvel seemed to have hit an impasse. Neither studio seemed willing to compromise, and for a brief time, it appeared as though the MCU would be berft of our beloved web-slinger.
However, according to businessinsider.com, Holland was instrumental in the brokering of the deal between Disney and Sony that would keep Spiderman in the MCU for a few more movies. He reportedly used his clout with Sony and even reached out to Bob Iser, CEO of Disney, in order to try to unite the two studios.
The new deal reached by Sony and Marvel covers one more Spiderman movie and another mystery MCU movie, likely some kind of team-up. I’m rooting for a Young Avengers movie with Spiderman starting the team, but there’s no evidence yet on what that mystery film might be. The third Spiderman-centric movie will probably expand on the Far From Home end credits scene, dealing with the consequences of the hero’s identity as Peter Parker being revealed to the world. However, fans still don’t know what will happen after the two movies included in the deal. Will Marvel and Sony attempt to negotiate once again? Or will writers now plan to give Spiderman a graceful exit from the MCU and slide him over to Sony? Either way, this new deal gives fans a chance to gain some closure and spend at least a little while longer with one of the most popular heroes in the MCU.