Marvel Studios Phase 3 Box Set to Include ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’

With Phase 3 of Marvel Studios movies finally nearing completion, some retailers are already marketing their box sets for home video release with a surprising addition.

It might not be shocking to most viewers, but the fact that Disney and Marvel Studios are including the home video release of Spider-Man: Homecoming is notable because it’s actually a Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures movie.

Spider-Man finally made his way to the Marvel Cinematic Universe after a series of failed negotiations between Disney and Sony were leaked to the public after Sony was hacked, resulting in the release of thousands of emails from employees at the company. This led to renewed interest and, after the disappointing box office of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Sony decided to make a deal.

Spider-Man: Homecoming is a Sony Pictures film, but the company hired Marvel Studios to make the film. Sony reaped all of the benefits of the box office and home video release, while Marvel and Disney profited from the increase in merchandising sales.

Because the nature of these deals are never relayed to the public, we don’t know if the terms of this home video release were agreed upon when the initial agreement was made, or if it was amended recently to accommodate the Phase 3 box set release. We’ll likely never know. But at least Marvel and Sony have a good relationship moving forward.

Though Sony is starting to expand its own cinematic corner of the Marvel Universe, they are still having to deal with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes for the foreseeable future. Spider-Man will next appear in Avengers 4, and then will get his second solo film in the franchise in the summer of 2019.

Despite being a Sony movie, Spider-Man: Far From Home is an important entry in the MCU because it will provide fans with their first look at the state of the universe after the events of Avengers 4.

Marvel boss Kevin Feige spoke about the film’s title and how it plays off of the events of the first film, while also having a layered meaning.

“Well, I mean, sure, let the speculation begin. That’s always fun,” Feige said. “We like [the title] of course because it ties into Homecoming, not just keeping that word going, which we like and we liked it more than Homecoming 2, but that notion of ‘home’ is a word that has dual meanings we’d like to continue with this [Marvel Cinematic Universe] version of Spider-Man. So, Far From Home has multiple meanings.”

The Marvel Studios Phase 3 Part 1 box set includes Captain America: Civil War, Doctor Strange, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Spider-Man: Homecoming, and Thor: Ragnarok. It’s scheduled to be released sometime in the first half of November.