Marvel and Sony are butting heads on the upcoming Spider-Man 4 movie and it’s not at all good news for fans of Tom Holland’s web-slinger. Kevin Feige-led Marvel and Tom Rothman-led Sony are divided on the creative direction, the release date, and the director of the movie. Both Marvel fans and Feige do not want the Spider-Man: No Way Home director Jon Watts to direct the next film and they have a clear reason why.
Marvel Studios is considering Netflix’s Daredevil creator Drew Goddard to direct Spider-Man 4. The studio also does not want the film to be released next year alongside plenty of other planned MCU movies, which is something Sony reportedly opposes.
No Way Home Director Returning For Spider-Man 4 Is Bad News For Marvel
When Tom Holland appeared in the Spidey suit in Captain America: Civil War, it was a phenomenal event for fans as well as Sony. The studio was clearly struggling with its creative direction for Andrew Garfield‘s Spider-Man movies. Sony’s deal with Marvel for a shared Spider-Man universe spawned three massively successful films led by Holland.
Interestingly, Jon Watts was at the helm of all three movies including Spider-Man: No Way Home, which earned a box office collection just short of $2 billion. Watts’ film Cop Car impressed producer Amy Pascal and landed him as the director of the Spider-Man movies. It was earlier rumored that Watts had stepped down as the director after the three Spider-Man films. Watts also dropped out from directing the highly anticipated MCU film, The Fantastic Four.
According to the latest reports from insider Daniel Richtman, Sony chief Tom Rothman wants Jon Watts back as the director of Spider-Man 4. Rothman also wants to bring back Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire and take the three wall-crawlers for a multiversal adventure. Sony’s earlier $1.922B success with Spider-Man: No Way Home and their colossal failure with Madame Web have forced them to choose this multi-starrer vision for the film.
This vision is totally opposite to what Marvel Studios has planned for the character. At this point, Marvel fandom clearly needs something that’s not Multiverse, and Kevin Feige intends to give them exactly that. Marvel’s vision for the film is more street-level with the potential involvement of Daredevil and Wilson Fisk. If Marvel has it their way, Drew Goddard, who created the fan-favorite street-level superhero series Daredevil, will helm the fourth Spider-Man film. Fans also shared their thoughts on the same:
Others have already said it but
If Jon Watts is announced as director it means Sony won and Spider-man 4 will be a multiverse film
If someone else is announced it means Kevin and Tom won and Spider-man 4 will be a street level film
Guess we just wait and see
— Spider-Man News (@SpiderMan_Newz) February 20, 2024
sony hella greedy i wouldn’t be surprised if they do win but we NEED the street level
— 𝕏ander ψ (@xander1825) February 20, 2024
street level is what the people want
— animator1110 (@JustAAnimator) February 20, 2024
I want Spider-Man 4 to be a street level movie and Team Up Of Spider-Man and Daredevil and not another Multiverse movie with Tobey and Andrew like they did already with No Way Home and save them for Beyond The Spider-Verse and Secret Wars
— Jeremy Casas – Spider-Man (@JArriagacasas) February 21, 2024
kinda crazy that it’s too much to ask to just see Spidey fighting some crime.
— nico (@nic_nack95) February 20, 2024
The film will also be a stepping stone to Avengers 5, where Spider-Man may play a central character. According to scooper @CanWeGetToast, Sony is pushing for a 2025 release of the film. However, Feige will be busy with at least 4 other Marvel releases next year, making it difficult for him to have any significant involvement in the creative. It is also notable that it has been more than two years since No Way Home hit theaters.
Jon Watts Considered Spider-Man As The Ground Level Hero Of The MCU
While it may not seem so anymore, Jon Watts once agreed with Kevin Feige’s vision that Spider-Man was the ground level of the MCU. Watts was allowed to make the creative decisions surrounding Tom Holland’s character in Captain America: Civil War. According to SlashFilm, Watts shared during the making of Spider-Man: Homecoming that he believed Spider-Man was the ground level of the MCU.
Watts shared that the films prior to Spider-Man: Homecoming could be described as the “Penthouse level of the Marvel world”. He revealed that Spider-Man was a regular kid in a world where the Avengers existed and would show what the ground level was like in that world. Jon Watts told SlashFilm:
“I was really excited about that, because the other movies have shown what I described as the Penthouse level of the Marvel world, what it’s like to be Thor, Iron Man, you know, a billionaire playboy and all of that stuff. But what’s great about Spider-Man is that he’s a regular kid and so by showing his story you also get to show what the ground level is like in a world where the Avengers exist, which is already, I think, a great premise for a movie.”
Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home are now available for streaming on Disney+. Spider-Man: No Way Home is available for rent on AppleTV+ and Amazon.
