After a long, long wait, Tom Holland will finally be getting Spider-Man 4, i.e. the newest addition to his Spider-Man film series pretty soon. With many fans still reminiscing about the events from Spider-Man: No Way Home, this new installment is expected to bring about a lot of the closure that fans desperately need after the preceding film’s heartbreaking end.
However, as much as this film is awaited, recent reports from insiders have made it evident that Sony and Marvel are inevitably repeating their major mistake: Treating the movie like yet another product. And the good news for MCU rival DC Universe’s fans is that their newest co-CEO is seemingly not making the same mistake with his projects for the universe’s reboot.
Tom Holland’s Spider-Man 4 is Repeating one Major Mistake
Tom Holland‘s Spider-Man 4 has been a much-awaited project since 2021’s No Way Home. But now that it’s greenlit and getting updates, it seems to be repeating the same mistake that was made with MCU’s other movies: Treating every new film like it’s yet another product, and focusing “more on the dollars” rather than the content and its helmers, as fans prefer to phrase it.
According to recent reports shared by industry insider Jeff Sneider via The InSneider, the fourth installment in Holland’s Peter Parker saga has some good news: It is looking to begin its filming by September or October. But — and there’s always a ‘but’ here — there is also some bad news, which is that there may be a lot of cooks in the kitchen instead of one.
To put it simply, filmmaker Justin Lin was reportedly one of the names in the mix for helming the upcoming movie. This means that the studios are not focusing on delivering a masterpiece stemming from the imagination of one director, but are instead looking for yet another “director for hire” who could bring in big bucks.
As pointed out by @bartonovopolis on X, the next installment for Holland’s web-slinger already has a filming schedule ready even before bringing on board one director who could lead the movie under his supervision. And although that has apparently been the Marvel formula for quite some time now, it inevitably spells bad news for Spidey 4.
Moreover, this further makes it clear that the studios are treating it like just another product and not a “passion project based on a filmmaker’s singular vision,” reducing even the director’s creative control over it. As @bartonovopolis on X liked to put it, the upcoming Holland-led web-slinger film is:
“but a product on a conveyer belt, with a director for hire.”
Having a filming schedule ready before a director is even on board speaks volumes about what we're about to get.
Not a passion project made based on a filmmaker's singular vision (like The Batman) but a product on a conveyer belt, with a director for hire. https://t.co/J8m1PhTqgI— Barto (@bartonovopolis) March 26, 2024
On the other hand, if we look at MCU’s rival aka the DC Universe, then the upcoming reboot for the saga just may be a good one. This comes after getting regular updates from the franchise’s co-CEO James Gunn, which unarguably proves that instead of making the same mistake, he treats his projects like real movies and puts proper care and effort into them.
Thus, so far, while the project from the MCU seems to be somewhat standing and heading forward on an invisible platform without a proper director to supervise it, the ones under Gunn’s supervision for the new DC Universe will ostensibly not be facing the same fate and just might be better, holding a deeper meaning to them.
Fans React to This Spider-Man 4 Revelation
Although the audience is once again divided into conflicting opinions on the matter, a lot of fans are actually expressing disappointment over Marvel repeating the same mistake with Holland’s next movie for them as well. Taking to the comment section, here are their varied reactions to this revelation on X:
It makes me sad we can't have filmmakers (yk, the ones who actually are responsible for giving direction to the entire film) that are attached and actually have a connection to the project right from the start and have a clear distinct vision for these blockbuster epics
— Hassan Hamid 🎬 (@HassanHamid266) March 26, 2024
And marvel bros still get mad when directors call these movies “paychecks” now
— Demiv (@Demivvy) March 26, 2024
Sony once again just seeing dollar signs.
— Ultra Messi (Fan) (@SuperMessi10i) March 26, 2024
It makes me so sad that this is all happening. Like NWH's ending left potential for the future and they're gonna mess it up.
Im also sure they would film the opening act with no director
— Sam (@samk0006) March 26, 2024
That's what I've never understood about movies like this one. I always thought that a directors job is to make a movie his vision? What excactly is the director Spider-Man 4 supposed to do if basically everything else is already in development?
— Ayden (@AydenReal99) March 26, 2024
What's upsetting about this is that these sorts of conveyor belt films with concept art, some of the action scenes, and pre-viz done, could be a great stepping stone for new directors to learn how studio productions work. Instead, a known director slaps their name on it for $
— Satan's 20inch spiked dìldo (@GapingBussySlag) March 27, 2024
Let’s be honest other than the ramey trilogy spiderman has never been a passion project for any elite director like Batman movies
— Adam (@Sharkey_78) March 27, 2024
They just want a name attached to it. It’s sad. Ruins the art of movies.
— louis (@louistoofun) March 27, 2024
You’d think during all this time since NWH, they would’ve been able to find a director and cook something up. But no, it’s been Sony and Marvel fighting over what to do for the last 2-3 years, and now they’re trying to cram something together
— ProtoJeb21 (@ProtoJeb21) March 26, 2024
Spider-Man 4: Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield Crossover Happened Almost 6 Years Before No Way Home
To put it in a nutshell: While fans just may end up getting the regular dose of superhero movies from the MCU through Spider-Man 4, as can be derived from this update, they will seemingly get something much better from Gunn’s version of the DC Universe where efforts and care from the director just may peak through.
