Thanks to the Fox/Disney merger, the X-Men and Fantastic Four are returning home to the Marvel Cinematic Universe but fans hoping that Spider-Man and his supporting cast could become a permanent part of the Marvel Studios roster may be setting themselves up for disappointment.
After Venom grossed over $500 million (so far) at the worldwide box office, Sony Pictures is riding high on the success of its first Spider-Man-less Spider-Man spinoff. As a result, box office analysts are adamant that there's no way the studio will be parting with the IP any time soon, something which makes sense considering how many live-action Spider-Verse spinoffs are in the works.
"If it had failed, there is a chance Sony would have definitely returned to the bargaining table with Disney. Now, that's up in the air," explains Exhibitor Relations' senior box-office analyst Jeff Bock.
"[Sony] took a calculated risk with 'Venom,' and it's now going to be a series. It seems Disney needs Sony's 'Spider-Man' more than Sony needs Disney ... If they consistently make films audiences want to see, Disney will have to buy Sony to get 'Spider-Man' back. This is just the beginning of Sony's reemergence as a studio of box-office distinction. They're not giving it up without a fight."
Disney has faced a number of challenges buying 21st Century Fox so the chances of them being able to also purchase Fox somewhere down the line is highly unlikely. Whether or not Sony will continue to allow Marvel Studios to use Spider-Man in its movies remains to be seen but following the success of Venom, they could decide that they're more than capable of handling the wall-crawler again...
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