We recently learned that Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures have two very different ideas for Spider-Man 4. The former wants to tell a street-level story likely pitting the wall-crawler and Daredevil against Mayor Fisk, a.k.a. the Kingpin of Crime.
Sony, meanwhile, is hoping to replicate the success of Spider-Man: No Way Home by enlisting Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield for another Multiversal adventure.
Both options have their fair share of pros and cons; many fans are keen to see Spidey embrace his newfound status as a hero protecting the streets of New York City just like his comic book counterpart. We've seen him assemble alongside The Avengers and battle aliens, so dialling that back for a more comic-accurate take on the hero would be no bad thing.
Then again, the three live-action Spider-Men embarking on a second team-up is unbelievably exciting on several levels.
Perhaps we'll ultimately get the best of both, but according to The Cosmic Circus' Alex Perez, the "most likely outcome" is that "[Spider-Man] will be [a] street-level story with Kingpin [and] Daredevil."
However, "[Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse] and [Avengers: Secret Wars] will feature Tobey and Andrew."
We'll see what happens but this does sound like the best possible outcome. The problem is, Sony stands to earn a lot more money from Spider-Man 4 than it will from any share of the profits the next two Avengers movies provide; with that in mind, you can see why they're anxious to bring Maguire and Garfield back sooner.
Perez was also asked whether Madame Web will have any sort of impact on future Spider-Man stories. "That’s the idea," he said. "Do they have any actual clue where it will lead to? No, they don't."
Last month, it was reported that the current plan for Spider-Man 4 is to make it so that Mayor Fisk outlaws "vigilantism" in New York City and targets street-level do-gooders like Spider-Man and Daredevil.
However, in order to take them down, he "establishes a bounty hunt for these heroes where several villains pop in for their shot at taking down Spidey [and Daredevil]." Kate Bishop, Jessica Jones, and Echo are among those rumoured to appear in the Spider-Man: No Way Home follow-up.
After the last movie brought back Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, it seems Marvel Studios will continue making this franchise - and the stakes Peter Parker faces - bigger and bigger, even in a street-level adventure. All the teenager has left is Spider-Man after the world forgot him, so it's no great surprise he'd take the fight to Fisk when the villain attempts to take that from him.
Could it be that Peter #2 and Peter #3 are ultimately needed to help lend a hand?