Sony reportedly ‘seriously’ considering selling Spider-Man rights after Kraven flop

As a seasoned gamer with a decade-long history of witnessing the ebb and flow of the comic book movie landscape, I can’t help but feel a sense of deja vu when it comes to the recent struggles of Sony’s superhero lineup. The underperformance of their 2024 releases has been as predictable as my annual defeat in “Dark Souls.

2024 hasn’t been kind to Sony at the box office regarding its superhero movies. Each of the three superhero films released this year fell short of expectations. Madame Web started off poorly, Venom: The Last Dance was the weakest performer in its series, and Kraven ended the year with the poorest debut ever for a Sony-Marvel film.

Before the release of “Kraven” in cinemas, there were whispers that the Sony Spider-Man Universe might be closing down. It was said that the studio was considering halting further projects due to a series of box office disappointments.

Initially, it became known that Sony seemed committed to the series, primarily working on “Spider-Man 4” and “Beyond the Spider-Verse.” Later on, more whispers emerged, hinting that Sony wasn’t discontinuing the Spider-Man film universe but instead was planning a reboot, closing off the current storyline to pave the way for a fresh narrative.

It appears that certain sources suggest Sony might be contemplating a more extreme step, which could involve relinquishing control over the Spider-Man intellectual property entirely.

New rumors suggest Sony is considering selling Spider-Man rights back to Marvel

With insiders still pondering about Sony’s and the Spider-Man Universe’s future following the underperformance of Kraven at the box office, there are whispers that Sony may be considering abandoning the Spider-Man intellectual property, as it has sustained losses with its individual films.

Based on information from sources such as My Time To Shine Hello and Daniel Richtman, it appears that Sony is seriously contemplating returning the rights for Spider-Man (Intellectual Property or IP) back to Marvel Studios due to recent developments. This news has been circulated by both parties, suggesting that there may be some truth to this rumor.

It’s plausible that the repeated losses with their non-Spider-Man movies might spark debate within Sony about the topic. Yet, it seems rather unlikely that they would genuinely consider returning the Spider-Man intellectual property to Marvel Studios.

Sony has held the rights to the Spider-Man and Friends collection since 1999, and though the studio’s Spider-Man Universe films haven’t been major money-makers, they’ve compensated significantly due to the success of the Spider-Man franchise films and the Venom movie series.

Despite certain individual Sony projects not meeting expectations, their successes significantly surpass their failures. It’s hard to conceive of a scenario where Sony would relinquish control over one of its major superhero franchises to Marvel Studios, no matter how lucrative a deal from Marvel might be for the rights repurchase.

It appears that Sony might need some breathing room before deciding on their next moves regarding the franchise. With two highly anticipated films like ‘Spider-Man 4’ and ‘Beyond Spiderverse’ in development, they have a bit of time to strategize and plan for the future of the franchise.

It’s plausible that Sony might eventually conclude that the risk of continuing to make Spider-Man films outweighs the benefits. After all, history has shown us some pretty wild events. But it appears extremely improbable that Sony would transfer the Spider-Man intellectual property back to Marvel Studios. Such a move would grant Marvel control over their top characters, leaving Sony without a piece of the lucrative superhero market.

2024-12-16 04:01