The last month has been a whirlwind for Spider-Man fans as word came out that the character was leaving the Marvel Cinematic Universe, only for a major new deal to be struck that will keep Peter Parker around for at least two more movies. And while it seems like a no brainer that the sequel to Spider-Man: Far From Home had to be done with Marvel Studios, the finer details between Disney and Sony Pictures still had to be ironed out, and it all came down to profits and cost.
A new report from the Hollywood Reporter indicates that Disney will foot some of the bill for Spider-Man 3, paying for 25 percent of the film’s budget.
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For the first two films, Sony only paid Marvel Studios a production fee, essentially hiring Kevin Feige to make the movie while they took in all of the profits. It seemed to be a win-win situation as Disney still retains all of the merchandising rights related to Spider-Man. But the production fee only amounted to around 5 percent of the grosses of the Spider-Man movies, according to the report.
Disney attempted to secure a more lucrative 50-50 financing deal for Spider-Man 3, which Sony flatly turned down and eventually turned into a major sticking point in the negotiations. But the current deal is still in Disney’s favor compared to the original plan, with them now taking 25 percent of the profits from the upcoming movie.
“I am thrilled that Spidey’s journey in the MCU will continue, and I and all of us at Marvel Studios are very excited that we get to keep working on it,” Feige said when the new deal was first announced. “Spider-Man is a powerful icon and hero whose story crosses all ages and audiences around the globe. He also happens to be the only hero with the superpower to cross cinematic universes, so as Sony continues to develop their own Spidey-verse you never know what surprises the future might hold.”
The current deal is only for Marvel Studios to produce a third Spider-Man movie as well as include the character in an upcoming MCU movie. Beyond that, it’s not clear if Peter Parker will stick around or transition to be the lynchpin of Sony’s own budding franchise of Spider-Man spinoffs — that will likely be left to another round of negotiations between the two studios.
The third Spider-Man movie is currently set to premiere in theaters on July 16, 2021.
