While Marvel Studios saw the film rights to “Fantastic Four” and “X-Men” returned to them after Disney acquired 21st Century, Sony Pictures moved forward with a string of their own Marvel movies featuring villain characters introduced in “Spider-Man” comic books starting with “Venom” back in 2018. However, seven years into the Sonyverse it hasn’t been terribly successful for them and a new report suggests it could be over after some major stumbles.
Forbes is presenting an early sign that their latest effort “Kraven The Hunter” could end up becoming the studio’s third major Marvel flop within a short amount of time with an estimated domestic opening weekend of $13-15 million, which is sort of on par with what “Madame Web” made opening weekend earlier in the year, and earned a poultry $100.4 million. The Jared Leto-led flick “Morbius” was the first of the Sonyverse films to have trouble making a profit after it took in $167.4 million.
The R-rated film (not originally meant as an R-rated film) reportedly has a budget of $110 million after multiple rounds of reshoots. Making a similar amount of money to either “Madame Web,” and “Morbius” would be another major loss for them in 2024. While the three “Venom” movies have made Sony a decent amount of money the two sequels have had diminishing returns compared to the first installment’s impressive haul of $856 million, and “Venom: The Last Dance” ($473 million globally) hasn’t made enough money to cover the losses on the other two films they’ve released.
Sony Pictures is a business and isn’t looking to break even or lose heaps of money on these films, so, when it was reported this week by The Wrap that the studio was pumping the breaks on future Sonyverse films, it is understandable and makes sense from a business perspective. It should be also pointed out that while there had been a bunch of other Sonyverse film development plans reported on in the past, we’re still waiting on any of them being greenlit including projects like “Jackpot,” “Nightwatch,” and others such as a “Spider-Woman” film that once had Olivia Wilde attached to direct. None of those films have had any concrete updates from Sony.
Spending those seven years trying to convince audiences that their Sonyverse films would have substantial connectivity to Tom Holland’s “Spider-Man” films (set in the mainline Marvel Cinematic Universe and made by Marvel Studios) without much or any real follow-through has felt like false advertising on the studio’s part to get asses in seats. Ultimately, their bizarre marketing gimmick to call the films “Spider-Man spinoffs” without any real involvement of the Web Head in them felt like Sony cashing in on the Marvel/Spider-Man branding by talking up a connection without really showing that on the big screen.
As it stands, “Spider-Man 4” from Marvel Studios and director Destin Daniel Cretton (“Shang-Chi & The Legend of The Ten Rings”) is the only major live-action feature film project on deck with “Spider-Man Noir” starring Nicolas Cage being made for Amazon bringing the “Spider-Verse” characters to the small screen.
Sony Pictures is behind a multitude of spinoff feature films set within their own Marvel Comics cinematic universe with Venom, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Morbius, Kraven The Hunter, and a Spider-Woman project from director Olivia Wilde (Booksmart). Another spinoff has landed a star to lead it.
Deadline reports that actress Dakota Johnson has been selected to play the mysterious Madame Web in a solo spinoff that is directed by S.J. Clarkson (Jessica Jones, The Defenders) from a script penned by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless.
Plot details are being kept under lock and key for the moment.
Madame Web was a supernatural character, not unlike Doctor Strange, from the pages of the Spider-Man comics and had abilities to show Peter Parker different realities, she was also connected to a version of the Multiverse in the 1990s animated series. There is a good shot since she doesn’t have any standout villains that she could be navigating the Spider-Verse/Multiverse.
Johnson joins Tom Hardy (Venom), Jared Leto (Morbius), and Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven) in Sony’s splinter universe that may or may not crossover directly with the main Marvel Cinematic Universe thanks to the box office success of Spider-Man: No Way Home.
There is still an expectation that Wilde’s Spider-Woman is moving forward, but it’s been a while since there has been a concrete update on that one. Kraven The Hunter is expected to be the next big Sony/Marvel project to go in front of cameras with J.C. Chandor (Triple Frontier) set to direct.
The superhero project has yet to get an official release date from the studio.
A lot of Spider-Man fans are excited but also slightly confused about what Sony Pictures is actually planning to doing with their Spider-Man franchise and subsequent spinoff films such as Kraven The Hunter starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kick-Ass, Tenet, Avengers: Age of Ultron) being announced for a release date of January 13, 2023.
Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group President Sanford Panitch revealed to Variety that Venom: Let There Be Carnage won’t include Tom Holland’s Spider-Man but reassures that audiences won’t miss the the web-head. However, he went on to clarify they do have a plan that will become more clear after the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home.
PANITCH: “There actually is a plan. I think now maybe it’s getting a little more clear for people where we’re headed and I think when ‘No Way Home’ comes out, even more will be revealed.”
The Sony executive also responded to the possibility of them resurrecting their former plans to make a Sinister Six film, something franchise producer Amy Pascal has said in the past she would be open to revisiting.
PANITCH: “It’s tough, because I think these projects are the kind of things we have to work on in the dark. They’re not ready until they’re ready. Kraven is a great example because we just didn’t rush it. We could have made that three plus years ago. It’s just now the script’s awesome, J.C. was the right choice, and we found the movie star because it was just kismet, and watching this other movie and realizing that could be the perfect casting.”
“It would be very cool, wouldn’t it?”
Drew Goddard (The Martian, Cabin In The Woods) was once attached to make the Sinister Six film until the studio got cold-feet from Amazing Spider-Man 2’s poor reception and they instead pivoted to making a deal with Marvel Studios, rebooting the franchise for a second time with Holland.
There have been wild casting and plot rumors concerning Spider-Man: No Way Home, from key actors from previous films reprising their villain roles to having people like Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire showing up (denied by both Tom Holland and Andrew Garfield in recent interviews). One of the more recent unconfirmed rumblings making the rounds is that we might indeed see an incarnation of the Sinister Six, something a lot of us just assumed was Marvel Studios’ aim once people like Jamie Foxx (Electro) and Alfred Molina (Doctor Octopus) were confirmed for the film that the film was going to build-up to. Bringing back existing actors quietly into those previous roles would allow them to assemble the Sinister Six quickly without have to rehash all their origins eating-up valuable screentime.
However, with most of these rumors, they are coming from multiple online sources (some are indeed creditable), but the information hasn’t actually been backed-up by the trades or confirmed by either Marvel Studios or Sony Pictures. So, it’s been tough to navigate which ones are real and which ones are simply online gossip or speculation. Many fans believe a teaser trailer is on the horizon and could answer a lot of their questions, but given Marvel’s secrecy it’s possible they could continue to hold-off confirming these cast and plot rumors.
Spider-Man: No Way Home is swinging to theaters on December 17, 2021.
Sony Pictures recently signed a lucrative deal with Netflix for post-theatrical release Pay 1 window, but that doesn’t end there. Variety states that Disney and Sony have made a new streaming deal for their Marvel properties that will see their films jumping to Disney+ after their post-theatrical run at Netflix. The deal kick-ins in with 2022 releases likely starting with Jared Leto’s Morbius and subsequent Marvel releases from Sony up until 2026.
Disney will also get access to other Sony content.
The wide-ranging deal, which runs through Sony’s 2026 theatrical slate, also calls for Sony titles to run across Disney’s array of streaming and linear platforms, making it unprecedented in scope as it covers Disney Plus, Hulu, FX Networks, ABC, Disney Channels and Freeform. It also includes a significant number of library titles that will be spread among various outlets.
There are heap of Spider-Man spinoffs in the works at Sony with Tom Hardy’s Venom 3 (quietly announced with the Sony/Netflix deal), J.C. Chandor’s Kraven The Hunter, Olivia Wilde’s Spider-Woman, Madame Web, Jackpot, Nightwatch, and Sinister Six (if they end-up resurrecting it). The sequel to Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse is likely part of the deal and the other animated Marvel projects in the works at Sony Animation Studios.
In September, it was reported that Amazon and Sony were in negotiations to bring their Marvel television projects such as Silk to the streaming giant that is already home to The Boys and Invincible.
It seems like a win-win for Sony Pictures as the studio didn’t have a streaming service and now has two homes allowing them to make revenue post-theatrical without having to launch a new service during a crowded market, which has been an extremely costly venture for other studios.
Many people had been curious why Sony Pictures hadn’t started-up their own streaming service or attempted to sign a deal with an existing streaming player. That has all changed as there is news today via The Hollywood Reporter that Sony and Netflix have signed a lucrative deal giving the them the streaming rights to their feature films starting in 2022 after the theatrical/home video windows.
Sony has inked a multi-year, exclusive first pay window licensing deal in the U.S. that will allow Netflix first pay window rights to Sony Pictures titles following their theatrical and home entertainment windows, the studio announced Thursday. (The typical pay one window is 18 months.)
Over the course of the deal, Netflix has also committed to financing a number of titles from the studio’s motion picture group. These will encompass the films that Sony intends to make directly for streaming from inception or decides at a later point to license for streaming. The announcement notes that Sony’s theatrical output will “continue at its current volume.
Starting in 2022, Netflix will be the first US streaming home for Sony Pictures films following their theatrical releases. Get ready for UNCHARTED, MORBIUS, BULLET TRAIN & WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING, plus future sequels to VENOM, JUMANJI, BAD BOYS & SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE
The new deal also gives them access to Sony’s Spider-Man franchise which is going to continue to expand for the foreseeable future as they’ll have dibs on future Spider-Man (mentioned by THR) and Venom films. It will seemingly include upcoming spinoff movies such as Olivia Wilde’s Spider-Woman film, J.C. Chandor’s Kraven The Hunter, Madame Web, Jackpot, Black Cat, Silver Sable, and Nightwatch.
Upcoming releases part of this deal include Uncharted, Morbius, Bullet Train, Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse 2, and other films released within the deal.
There was always a hint that Netflix was going to seek a studio partnership after Disney+ became their main competition and HBO Max started throwing the new releases from the Warner Bros. slate on the streaming service.
It’ll be curious if Netflix will attempt to develop exclusive series based on Sony franchises as well. In September, it was reported that a Silk live-action series was in the works with Amazon being considered with Phil Lord, Chris Miller, and Amy Pascal producing. Cindy Moon aka Silk is a spinoff character from Sony’s stable of Spider-Man universe heroes.
You might remember that Marvel Studios almost lost access to Spider-Man not too long ago and that Spider-Man 3 would have been strictly a Sony Pictures affair with Marvel sitting on the sidelines as their initial deal had expired. Luckily, Tom Holland was able to convince both Sony’s Tom Rothman and Disney’s Bob Iger to see eye-to-eye hatching a new smaller deal that would allow Marvel to make Spider-Man 3 and Holland to appear in one more MCU film.
A new rumor coming from The Disinsider Show (via The Direct) suggests that that two-picture deal has seemingly been extended, however, they weren’t forthcoming with details as to how many films are involved along with if Marvel Studios would be getting involved with any of the upcoming Sony Pictures projects like Kraven The Hunter.
While this is very likely given that Marvel would most likely want access to various Sony characters in the future (Miles Morales feels like a no-brainer), as with most rumors take with a pinch of salt. There are a couple of things that might have telegraphed this deal being in the works.
Last week, Kevin Feige confirmed that Spider-Man 3 would directly interconnect with Sam Raimi’s Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness all but confirming yet another crossover there. We’ve assumed for months that this was going to be the MCU film in the second deal given that the productions are close to each other and that Benedict Cumberbatch is confirmed to appear in Spider-Man 3.
It was also announced that Jon Watts will be directing their Fantastic Four reboot after tackling a trilogy of Spider-Man films (second feature film reboot of the hero) and since Spider-Man debuted in the pages of Fantastic Four it wouldn’t terribly shocking if they attempt to at least get a cameo from Peter Parker in there.
A Spider-Woman film is reportedly in the works at Sony Pictures from director Olivia Wilde, which would likely feature Jessica Drew, a character that Marvel Studios is said to have access to as she debuted outside of the Spider-Man comic books having more ties to MCU groups such as S.H.I.E.L.D., HYDRA, S.W.O.R.D., and the Avengers. She also plays a role in the Secret Invasion (now a Disney+ series) as it’s revealed Drew is actually Skrull Queen Veranke and happens to be pals with Carol Danvers in the comics making a crossover into Captain Marvel 2 a strong possibility. While Marvel’s involvement is assumed by fans this has yet to be made official but it’s very likely.
There has been some rumblings that Kraven will appear in Spider-Man 3, but this has yet to be officially confirmed by either trades or Marvel themselves. A solo feature film directed by J.C. Chandor (Triple Frontier, A Most Violent Year) has been in the works for some time and if Kraven does appear in Spider-Man 3 might suggest that his solo film might be considered part of the MCU. It’s worth pointing out that Kraven’s development has been taking place even before the Spider-Man 3 drama. At one point, there had been talk that Spider-Man would show up in the film.
Other Marvel projects in the works at Sony include a Madame Web movie from S.J. Clarkson, a Jackpot movie, and a live-action Silk series. They had also once been developing a Sinister Six film with Drew Goddard before the Holland reboot, it’s looking very likely that the group of villains may cameo in the next Spidey pic.
In theory, if there is an extension it could mean that Marvel gets to make Spider-Man 4 along with possibly adding him in future films like Avengers 5 or Fantastic Four. With the reasons given Marvel could put their tentacles into things like Sony’s Spider-Woman and other spinoffs.
I guess we’ll have to wait and see if this will be Tom Holland’s send-off or if Marvel will double-down on his incarnation of Spider-Man.
On the heels of the news that Spider-Man spinoff film Kraven The Hunter is indeed moving forward at Sony Pictures with Deadline reporting that Triple Frontier director J.C. Chandor is in talks with the studio, it looks like the script will have new writers as well.
Richard Wenk (The Equalizer, The Expendables 2) wrote the original draft of Kraven and it seems that the studio has brought in some seasoned comic book screenwriters with Art Marcum and Matt Holloway as mentioned in Deadline’s report.
The writing duo is behind the first Iron Man, Punisher: War Zone, Men In Black: International, and fellow Spider-Man spinoff Morbius. They most recently worked with Sony on the Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg video game adaptation Uncharted, currently filming in Germany.
Sergei Kravinoff aka Kraven The Hunter is a Russian game hunter that crosses paths with multiple Marvel Comics heroes over the years but is primarily known as a Spider-Man villain, which has led to some speculation that Kraven could be showing up in Marvel Studios’ Spider-Man 3 and because of comments from director Ryan Coogler assumptions he may appear in Black Panther 2 as well.
Neither rumors have been confirmed in any substantial way but there is a shot that Sony will attempt to add Tom Holland to this new Kraven spinoff according to previous comments made by the film’s original screenwriter Richard Wenk.
Speaking with Discussing Film (via SlashFilm) in the fall of 2018, Kraven screenwriter Richard Wenk suggested that Spider-Man would be part of the film.
WENK: “I’m just starting it. It’s an interesting world. A great character. It’s going to adhere very closely to the lore of Kraven the Hunter. And he is going to come face to face with Spider-Man. I’m just beginning it, beginning the process, and because it’s a big IP, Marvel world, there’s lots of hurdles to overcome before you can start writing, to crack the right story and to get the right tone. It’s a new world for me. But what’s nice about it is it’s a very grounded character, he doesn’t have a lot of crazy superpowers and things like that so he’s more grounded and that fits what I like to do. That’s as much as I know.”
Hiring new writers could put into question if we will ultimately see Holland’s Peter Paker being part of the film as that version may have changed since subsequent rewrites from Marcum and Holloway.
However, there are clear signs that these Sony-made Marvel films already connect directly to the Marvel-made solo Spider-Man films suggesting a crossover with Holland’s Spidey is only a matter of time.
Morbius is confirmed to be directly tied to the MCU Spider-Man films after the trailer revealed that Michael Keaton’s Vulture from Spider-Man: Homecoming is showing up in the film during some jailbreak sequence with Jared Leto’s Michael Morbius linking Homecoming to Morbius.
It also gave a direct nod to the final scene in Spider-Man: Far From Home when Parker’s identity is revealed and is framed for the murder of the villainous Quentin Beck aka Mysterio, as Morbius walks past a Spider-Man poster with “murderer” painted on it.
J.K. Simmons confirmed to SiriusXM that he filmed another J. Jonah Jameson cameo possibly for Morbius or Venom: Let There Be Carnage along with a plan to do another. Jameson could be another character that moves between the MCU and Sony-made films.
SIMMONS: “There is one more JJJ appearance in the can and from what I’m hearing there is a plan for yet another one. Hopefully, JJJ will continue now and forever.”
Kraven’s half-brother may have actually cameoed in Spider-Man: Far From Home, as Numar Acar played Nick Fury (Talos) associate Dimitri, who may or may not be a version of Dimitri Smerdyakov aka The Chameleon.
We’re yet to see Venom: Let There Be Carnage have any real significant crossover stuff as they have yet to release a trailer for the upcoming sequel, unless they’ve snuck a cameo from J.K. Simmon’s newly revived J. Jonah Jameson.
Kraven is yet another part of Sony’s greater plans for its splinter Marvel cinematic universe with the unfortunate corporate name Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters, yes that is the official name they’re going with.
Here is a rundown of the other Marvel projects in the works and releasing from Sony Pictures.
The studio recently moved Morbius to a release date of March 19th, 2021, and placed the Venom sequel Venom: Let There Be Carnage to June 24th, 2021.
Spider-Man 3 from director Jon Watts is supposed to begin shooting this winter with a December 17th, 2021 release date but there is a likelihood that production starts in early 2021. The combination of COVID-19, multiple filming locations, and the Uncharted shoot will likely be determining factors if they’ll be able to start or finish on schedule.
A potential Spider-Woman film will be directed by Olivia Wilde according to Deadline with a script from Wilde and Katie Silberman, a previous script was penned by Gary Spinelli (American Made, Chaos Walking). If the film is indeed Spider-Woman, it would focus on Jessica Drew and suggests the project could be handled by Marvel Studios in another co-production deal because Marvel has access to Drew as she didn’t originate in the pages of Spider-Man comics.
Madame Web will be directed by S.J. Clarkson but the report from Variety stressed that while a screenwriter hadn’t been chosen the studio was interested in casting Amy Adams and Charlize Theron, then building a script around that actress.
Jackpot is another female-led superhero project at Sony that will have a script from Marc Guggenheim (Green Lantern, Arrow), a director has yet to be announced though.
A Sinister Six film was being developed during The Amazing Spider-Man era with Drew Goddard (The Martian) attached to write and direct. It also crumbled to pieces when Sony decided to reboot the character for a second time scrapping the project in the process. Franchise producer Amy Pascal has voiced some interest in circling back to Goddard and Sinister Six at some point.
Black Cat and Silver Sable could end up getting solo movies after their team-up film Silver & Black saw it’s production halted and was split into two solo projects instead. There haven’t been many updates on the progress of either film. It’s possible that multiple character and plot leaks contributed to Sony ultimately putting the film in ice.
Nightwatch and Silk might also eventually get their own films, but again there haven’t been recent updates on their status at the studio.
Back in March, The Wrap reported that screenwriter Roberto Orci was attached to write an untitled Spider-Man spinoff for Sony, but the information hasn’t been supported by other outlets or what that project will be. There had also been rumors from The Iluminerdi that characters such as Man-Wolf and Solo could be getting their own films as well, this has yet to be supported by the trades. Either could end up being this potential untitled Orci project.
Marvel’s standing deal with Sony for Spider-Man allows them to make Spider-Man 3 keeping it within the MCU and they’ll have access to Spidey for another undisclosed Marvel Studios film. It’s a strong possibility that Disney and Sony could re-up the deal in the not too distant future.
We’ll have to wait and see what projects ultimately go in front of cameras and are released by the studio. It’s worth noting that a production timeline for Kraven The Hunter andOlivia Wilde’s film seemingly hasn’t been locked-down.
THE RONIN 