There have been various (some pretty wild) rumors relating to Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures' plans for a fourth Spider-Man movie doing the rounds over the past few months, but most insiders seem to agree that that main reason the project took so long to come together was due to creative differences over the best way to proceed with the story.
The script is believed to have undergone a major overhaul, with Kevin Feige and Sony's Tom Rothman finally settling on a mostly grounded story with some Multiversal elements (though the movie was still being described as an "Avengers-level event" up until very recently).
In a way, Spider-Man: No Way Home's third-act Doctor Strange twist backed the writers into a bit of a creative corner, but it also presented an opportunity to start fresh and take the franchise in a brand-new direction.
It sounds like this is exactly what Marvel/Sony are planning to do.
According to Daniel Richtman, Spider-Man 4 will be a "new take" on the iconic wall-crawler, with director Destin Daniel Cretton bringing the character in a completely different direction with a new supporting cast.
Though the scooper didn't actually use the "R" word, this had led to speculation that the fourth Spidey film will serve as a soft reboot, which probably isn't that much of a stretch given everything we've been hearing.
For one, Peter Parker is expected to get a new love-interest, and Zendaya's involvement in the movie is said to be limited. Parker will also reportedly be attending college when we catch up with him, which would likely be where the new supporting cast comes in. As for the villain, rumor has it that Spidey will face-off against a foe that has never appeared in live-action before.
If this is accurate, we don't expect a major change in tone or style - although some fans would probably welcome a slightly darker take on the character.
Here's what Holland had to say about the fourth solo Spidey movie in a recent interview.
"We have the best in the business working toward whatever the story might be. But until we’ve cracked it, we have a legacy to protect. The third movie was so special in so many ways that we need to make sure we do the right thing."
It seems they are still trying to figure out what "the right thing" is, but it certainly sounds like a lot of different ideas have been considered. If every rumor was to be believed, Spider-Man 4 will see Holland, Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield's wall-crawlers join forces with Venom, Ghost Rider, Black Cat, Daredevil and The Punisher to face off against Mephisto, Vulture, Knull, and an army of Symbiotes.