No Rush For Spider-Man 5, Marvel Say

Following the news that the newly released Spider-Man: Brand New Day has broken Marvel records for the biggest domestic box-office opening with a gross of $360 million, beating Avengers: Endgame by $2.9 million, Marvel Studios and Sony have discussed where they stand with working on Spidey’s next onscreen adventure in the MCU.

Producer Kevin Feige affirmed in a recent sit-down that it’ll be some time before star Tom Holland returns as Peter Parker. “There are always plans. But right now, he [Holland] is going to rest after that global tour,” the producer shared. “He and Zendaya are going to take a good and restful victory lap, which they very much deserve.”

Holland and Zendaya had just wrapped up on press runs for Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey when they had to repeat the whole thing for Spider-Man, with Zendaya also appearing in The Drama, Euphoria season 3 and still has yet to appear in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part III.

Sony has also responded to Spider-Man: Brand New Day’s success.

“Spider-Man is uniting people across cultures and ages,” Tom Rothman, chief over at Sony Pictures, added. “People can piss on theatrical all they want, but that’s one thing that only movies – and movie theaters – can do.”

The studio has additionally handled questions about a fifth MCU Spider-Man flick.

“The honest truth is we don’t know at this point. This has been the focus of our studio for almost two years. I can tell you this: I certainly, certainly hope,” the chief also said. “I heard Tom say at some point that he wanted to continue, and we would love it if he did.”

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Rothman also braved talk on the failed Sony Spider-Man universe, which saw initial success with Venom and Venom: Let There Be Carnage in 2018 and 2021. However, it all tumbled into flames with the release of 2022’s Morbius, directed by Daniel Espinosa and written by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless, starring Jared Leto in the titular role of a newly formed vampire who has cured himself of a blood disease. The film bombed at the box office when it grossed $167.5 million from a budget of $75–$83 million, and racked up five Golden Raspberry Award nominations. To further add salt to the wound, Morbius was subjected to scathing internet mockery and memes.

Additional failed films came with 2024’s Madame Web by S.J. Clarkson, which grossed just $100.5 million from an $80 million budget and won three Golden Raspberry Awards, and 2024’s Kraven the Hunter by J.C Chandor, which earned $62 million from its $110–1$30 million budget; the worst performance in the SSU.

“Ultimately, the audience wasn’t satisfied enough with them. Whether that’s a fair assessment of those movies, who knows; that’s howling into the wind,” Rotham stated. “The audience is the boss, and they didn’t respond. It’s as simple as that… We never looked at it as the ‘Sony-Marvel Universe.’”

“We looked at if there were worthwhile movies to make with other characters,” he added. “At the moment, there are none in active development.”

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Ros Tibbs

Editor

Ros is a film and lit graduate writing news and reviews at The People's Magazine. She also writes long-form film theory, film history, analytical or curated recommendations pieces on other platforms.

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