Sony boss confirms fate of Spider-Man universe following multiple box-office flops

Following disappointing ticket sales for films like Madame Web, Morbius, and Kraven the Hunter, Sony is likely moving away from sequels and won’t be bringing back Dakota Johnson as Cassandra Webb, or continuing those storylines within its Spider-Man universe.

Even with the unintentionally funny moments in Madame Web – like the now-famous “researching spiders” line that didn’t even make the final cut – and big names like Jared Leto and Matt Smith (Morbius) and Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Sony’s Spider-Man-adjacent movies have been major disappointments, both financially and critically. All three films have received very poor reviews, scoring 15% or lower on Rotten Tomatoes.

Besides the main Spider-Man movies, Sony’s other successful Spider-Man projects include the animated Spider-Verse films and Tom Hardy’s Venom trilogy. While the Venom movies had mixed reviews, they generally performed better than Sony’s other live-action Spider-Man films.

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With Sony and Marvel partnering again for a new Spider-Man movie starring Tom Holland – titled Spider-Man: Brand New Day – the future of Spider-Man films could be heading in a fresh direction.

In a recent interview on The Town podcast, Tom Rothman, the chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures, announced plans to revitalize the Spider-Man universe with a new beginning for its characters.

“Yes, yes,” Rothman said when host Matt Belloni asked whether the plan would include “new people”.

The studio doesn’t plan to release this new Spider-Man project anytime soon. According to one executive, creating anticipation is key – they want audiences to really miss the characters before the next installment arrives.

With Kraven the Hunter released in December 2024, and Brand New Day and Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse scheduled for July 2026 and June 2027, we expect to hear more solid news about future Marvel projects later this year or sometime next year.

A new Venom movie is officially in the works! Zach Lipovsky and Adam B. Stein, who previously directed Final Destination: Bloodlines, will be directing.

Tom Hardy, known for playing Venom’s host Eddie Brock in the live-action movies, will also be a producer on the new animated film featuring the popular character. He’ll be working alongside producers Amy Pascal, Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, and Kelly Marcel.

The new Spider-Man films, Brand New Day and Beyond the Spider-Verse, will be released in theaters on July 31, 2026, and June 18, 2027, respectively.

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2026-02-25 17:19