Disney updated its slate of Marvel movies yesterday evening, removing a previously scheduled July 24, 2026 movie so that year will see the release of only three MCU titles.
We know Avengers: Doomsday is coming on May 1, 2026, while it seems highly likely that Blade will be pushed to February 13, 2026. As for that November 6, 2026 slot, it remains a mystery to us.
As you might expect, there are a lot of questions about what all this means for Spider-Man 4. It's already been close to three years since Spider-Man: No Way Home swung to a record-breaking $1.9 billion and, based on past reports, Sony Pictures needs to start production on that fourth instalment by next September to retain the franchise's rights.
As Spider-Man 4 isn't technically a Marvel Studios movie, then it could quite easily still be released next year. In fact, Disney may have gifted that July 24 slot to Sony Pictures because it's typically been a prime slot for the web-slinger on the big screen.
February and November don't feel like a good fit and, should it be pushed into 2027, Spider-Man 4 will have to come out between Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, a decision bound to have major consequences on its story.
We'd bet on the movie dropping next July, but Sony has yet to make its intentions known. The studio remains in partnership with Marvel Studios and, while last year's strikes won't have helped, it does feel like all parties involved might be struggling to crack the movie's story.
Remember, we've previously heard that Sony wants another Multiversal adventure while Marvel is keen on a street-level clash with The Kingpin.
"Amy [Pascal] and I are working on it," Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige recently said of Spider-Man 4. "We have writers who are going to be delivering us a draft relatively soon."
"We love [director] Jon [Watts]. Jon did three of the best Spider-Man films ever for us," he added in a separate interview. "He's got lots of things going on now. So we'll probably be looking for somebody else, just because he's busy."
Alongside Tom Holland, Zendaya is expected to reprise her role as MJ in Spider-Man 4. Sydney Sweeny is rumoured to be playing Black Cat, and it's been widely reported - but not confirmed - that Charlie Cox, Vincent D'Onofrio, and Paul Rudd will appear as Daredevil, The Kingpin, and Ant-Man.
As for who could direct Spider-Man 4, plenty of names are floating around online. Among them are Justin Lin (Fast & Furious), Drew Goddard (The Cabin in the Woods) and, most recently, Ms. Marvel's Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire helmer Adam Wingard.
Stay tuned for updates on Spider-Man 4 as we have them.