The Amazing Spider-Man 2
(Image: Sony Pictures)
It is officially very quiet surrounding the future of Spider-Man on the big screen. Behind the scenes, however, it is anything but quiet. Papa Marvel and mama Sony have a falling out, according to internal sources, although there is light at the end of the MCU tunnel.
In the comics, Peter Parker is currently in his thirties with a beard, adult job and in some timelines even children. In other words: Marvel Studios can still move forward with Tom Holland, who will turn 28 next summer.
Where is the next Spider-Man?
Still, the situation regarding Spider-Man as far as films are concerned remains quite uncertain. No, there is not another threat of divorce between the father and mother that are Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios, but the two parents are far from in agreement about the future of Spider-Man in the MCU.
At the end of this year it will be three years since that No Way Home was released, the multiverse spectacle in which the previous two Peter Parkers returned to help Tom Holland. The film ended with Peter Parker finally regaining his anonymity thanks to the magic of Doctor Strange. Back to the small-scale, sympathetic one friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, instead of growing bigger and bigger stakes and multiverse nonsense.
At least, that’s Marvel Studios’ vision. Thanks to several sources, we already knew that the studio cannot reach an agreement with Sony Pictures, the party that owns the Spidey film rights. It is now clear how extremely divergent the plans for the iconic character are.
Sony wants multiverse explosion
According to internal sources, Sony does not want to go back to basics for Spider-Man 4, on the contrary: the Japanese giant wants to go for a gigantic scope again, with a role for the previous Spider-Men and multiverse nonsense.
There is also a complicating factor: Tom Holland himself. He has already emphasized several times in interviews that he will not simply sign for a new film.
He has only signed for three films, meaning the fourth would be a contract extension, and Holland has explained that he would only reprise his role if the right story comes along.
Good news and familiar faces
Fortunately, there is an update to report: Marvel and Sony are reportedly as good as finalized on a new deal, with only story-related disagreements as the final hurdle.
In fact, according to a reputed leaker who calls himself HolyField News, that threshold has already been as good as passed. Take this news with a grain of salt, but Peter Parker is reportedly returning to action street level level.
So: small-scale, local. Spider Man 4 According to that leaker, it is scheduled for early 2026. In other words, Marvel Studios gets its way, but according to several sources there is something in return. Sony wants to bring a wide range of characters introduced in its own films to the MCU: Venom, Kraven the Hunter, Mysterio and Norman Osborn.
Miles Morales and Daredevil
In fact, the company reportedly even wants to use the fourth film to introduce Miles Morales, the beloved black Spider-Man from the comics and games. A nice plan B if Tom Holland still drops out. And, salient detail: Sony reportedly still wants the film to have a Multiverse-esque ending. An important detail, because sources indicate that Sony wants to use that opening to bring back Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield in later films. An asset that Sony actually already has Spider Man 4 wanted to deploy, but according to sources, Marvel Studios put a stop to it.
Also know insiders to report that Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige does not want to bring in Jon Watts for the fourth Spidey film, but Drew Goddard. A perfect choice if you ask us for a smaller-scale Spider-Man, because Goddard was also at the helm of the Daredevilseries from Netflix.
Where there is smoke…
But hey, even if these sources don’t spout nonsense, it could still be old or canceled plans and wishes, so take all the above ‘news’ with a grain of salt. You probably get closest to the truth by reading between the lines and listing recurring leaked elements. We will only find out later which cocktail we will actually see in early 2026. But where there’s smoke, there’s fire…
In the meantime, also check out the latest news about Daniel Craig’s successor as James Bond, because he will probably be a superstar from the Marvel stable!
