Spider-Man/Marvel Cinematic Universe split: In defense of Sony

If you’re still mad at Sony over pulling Spider-Man out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you really shouldn’t be. If anything, they were right to do so.

On August 20th, 2019, news that Spider-Man was leaving the Marvel Cinematic Universe rocked comic fans and moviegoers alike. Talks between Sony Pictures (the studio which owns the film rights to the Web-Head) and Walt Disney Studios (the parent company of Marvel) had broken down. Some hoped this news wasn’t true. Others felt it was part of the negotiation process and that both studios would soon come to an agreement. By the time of the Disney D23 Expo, however, it was official. Spider-Man was gone. And of course, Sony took all the blame.

Even as the news broke, fans immediately lost their collective minds. Stock prices for Sony dropped. Protesters are planning to storm studio lots. Twitter erupted with threats of boycotting the extended cut of Spider-Man: Far From Home. Commentators were quick to point out how ungrateful Sony was. After all, if not for Marvel Studios and Kevin Feige, Sony’s Spider-Man wouldn’t be seeing such newfound popularity. Think of the children and the poor fans who will never see their beloved Spidey swinging with their favorite Marvel superheroes onscreen ever again.

To all those blaming Sony for ruining Spider-Man, the MCU, and your childhoods, your anger is misplaced. Sony isn’t the villain of this story. If anything, Sony did the right thing by refusing Disney’s offer.

For starters, you must understand the original deal Sony and Disney agreed upon which allowed Spidey into the MCU. In exchange for letting the Web-Head appear in the MCU, Sony keeps 95% of the profits from all solo Spider-Man movies. In turn, Marvel Studios keeps all profits from any MCU film featuring Spider-Man. Moreover, Sony had final creative control on the Spider-Man movies, so long as Marvel, as co-producer, also had a say when it came to casting, director, screenwriters, etc. This deal wouldn’t apply to any other characters associated with Spidey that Sony also owned, such as Venom, Miles Morales, Black Cat, or Morbius.

This was an unprecedented compromise, one which worked well for all parties. Spider-Man, as played by actor Tom Holland, became a part of the MCU with Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), and Avengers: Endgame (2019). Bolstered from being an MCU film, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2016) earned over $880 million worldwide. It’s sequel, Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019), made over $1 billion, beating Spider-Man 3 as the most successful film in the franchise.

Yet months before Endgame and Far From Home, Disney made Sony a new offer. According to Deadline, which first broke the story, Marvel proposed to finance 25% of the production costs of Sony’s Spider-Man movies in exchange for 25% of the gross. Sony, however, sat on it. Sometime later, Disney came back with a counteroffer. This time, they wanted 50% of the gross profits for financing 50% of the costs.

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Now keep in mind, Disney still owns the Spider-Man merchandising rights. By itself, the toys, clothing, and other products with Spidey’s likeness generate $1.3 billion a year–more than any other superhero IP combined. They’re already making loads of money off Spider-Man without the movies.

Meanwhile, with the loss of James Bond to United Artists and Universal, and the lackluster returns on Ghostbusters (2016) and Men in Black: International (2019), Sony has no other viable film franchise but Spider-Man. And now, Disney wants up to half of the profits from that very franchise after previously agreeing to 5%? If you’re Sony, why in the world would you ever agree to such a deal? You wouldn’t, as would anyone with even the smallest knowledge on how to run a business.

Then there’s the fact that for the past six years, Sony’s been trying to develop their own cinematic universe around the other Spider-Man characters. So far, it seems to be working. Despite a critical pounding, Venom (2018) was still a box office smash, and a sequel is in the works. The critically acclaimed Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. Morbius is already in production, and there are plans for Kraven, Black Cat, Silver Sable, and Sinister Six movies. It only makes sense having Tom Holland’s Spider-Man officially tied directly to those films.

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Also, let’s be honest: Marvel Studios’ upcoming Phase 4 isn’t exactly setting the pop culture landscape ablaze. For many moviegoers, Endgame felt like the final chapter of the MCU. New X-Men and Fantastic Four movies are still years away from development. And with Iron Man dead, the MCU doesn’t have a real mascot. Anyone watching Far From Home knew Disney wanted Spider-Man to take over that role going forward. Disney was even developing an entire Spider-Man ride for their upcoming Avengers Campus at Disneyland. The MCU needs Spider-Man more than Spider-Man needs the MCU, and both Disney and Sony know this.

And before you say, “Well, Disney can just buy Sony outright if they wanted,” understand that they can’t. In the first place, Sony is a Japanese company, and there are laws and regulations which make a U.S. company purchasing an international company very difficult (just ask Apple). And even if Disney only purchased the Sony Pictures division, they would rightfully be accused of making monopolistic practices. They’re already facing similar criticism after purchasing 20th Century Fox earlier this year.

Does this mean I think Spider-Man is, creatively, in better hands with Sony than they are with Marvel? Not necessarily. While Sam Raimi’s trilogy was a huge success, Marc Webb’s films are what forced Sony to partner with Disney in the first place. Likewise, holding on to Spidey’s IP to bolster their own cinematic universe when Marvel’s might be heading for the doldrums is a huge gamble. Plus, while the current Sony Chairman Tom Rothman, might be a savvy negotiator, he’s not exactly a visionary. This is the same guy who thought a Deadpool solo movie couldn’t make any money.

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Even so, that doesn’t mean Sony should be vilified simply for refusing what they felt was a bad business deal. Like it or not, the entertainment business is still a business. We’re not always going to like every creative decision these movie studios make. At the end of the day, we’re still getting new Spider-Man movies regardless. So long as moviegoers are willing to pay money to see those films and are entertained by them, then it really doesn’t matter which studio produces them.

Besides, look on the bright side. At least we won’t have Peter Parker acting like Tony Stark’s discount version of Robin anymore.

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