Dear Sony Execs: A Rant on Spider-man

Looking back, I've written A LOT about Spider-man on this blog. I've written reviews of movies, video games, speculation on how he could be incorporated into the MCU (and being somewhat to totally wrong). I'm even man enough to admit that at one time, I thought it would be a good idea to cast Shia LaBeouff as Peter Parker...

I honestly still don't hate that idea as much as I'm pretty sure everyone else does.

But this week we find ourselves watching the hero in the middle of a divorce between the partnership with Sony and Marvel. Even the people who knew that that deal was pretty much temporary and could fall apart at any minute seem to be pretty surprised that things went down so quickly that essentially we will probably not see Spider-man in another MCU film for a little bit. And this is jarring because we just spent the last film setting up the idea that Peter Parker is basically the new Iron Man.

But this rant isn't really for the fans (especially those who blame Sony for this falling out). No, this rant is more for the Executives at Sony (as I am sure that they are reading my obscure, poorly updated blog).

Dear Sony Exec

First off, I want to say that I don't blame you for this. We haven't always had the best relationship and I'll be honest, I still don't totally trust you with a live action Spider-man movie. But I gotta give you credit for standing up to the conglomerate that is Disney.

As you know, they wanted to share the production profits 50/50 on your most profitable franchise. As much as I can say that Disney has had a hand in revitalizing the character, 50% is a big bill to swallow for a property that on paper is still yours. It's a bull move, and I'm going to put my cards on the table and say I don't think you're to blame here. At the end of the day these things come down to business decisions and while I'd like to live in a world where that wasn't the case, it doesn't give Disney the right to be a tool and subtly monopolize your property from right under you.

But my question is... what now?

Could Disney come back with a counter-offer tomorrow and this could all be over? Sure. I remember when there were talks about Robert Downey Jr getting killed off way back in like Phase 2 because Marvel didn't want to pay his ridiculous salary, or when Chris Evan's contract was over, and those ended up getting resolved so let's cross that bridge when we get to it. In the time where you can no longer implement the character of Spider-man into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, what are you gonna do?

I'll be straight with you Sony Exec, this is not going to be easy. You have a checkered history and your past decisions have not all been great. And what's more, you don't seem to learn very quickly from your mistakes.

Going back to 2007, you derailed a really successful, albeit even ground breaking trilogy by shoehorning 3 villains into the film. And then you thought you'd fix that mistake by doing the exact same thing 7 years later and expecting a different result. You reboot the character so much that people are already joking about the fact that you're probably going to kill Uncle Ben off for a fourth time if you reboot this character again, which let's be real, you're probably going to.

And then there's Venom...

I think on a certain level, we can both thank and blame Venom for the current events of this week. There were inklings before Venom came out that you, good Sony Exec, recognized that this movie was going to be trash. You meddled so much in this film that it can only be described as a flaming hot pile of garbage... and yet, it made you A LOT money.

Again, on one hand, I'm happy that's the case. If Venom hadn't made money, you wouldn't have the balls to stand up to Disney and not let them steam roll you. But on the other hand... this movie or its sequels should not give you confidence that your live action movies are in good hands. It does not matter if Andy Serkis is directing the sequel, you have a long way to convince me, and your audience, that that sequel isn't going to be continuation of the hot garbage I saw last year.

That being said, no matter how you move forward, it wouldn't make much sense for you NOT to use the little foundation Venom provided you in your future Spider-man endeavors. I'm going to say this is the part of your track record where luck was on your side.

And to give you your due credit, it hasn't been all luck that brings us to where we are today. You had a little piece of success called Into the Spider-verse that really firmed up that false sense of confidence Venom gave you.

There is no caveat to this, this is a fantastically made movie that Kevin Fiege had nothing to do with. Period.

But if it was just this movie, or even this movie and the PS4 game (which you can barely count), it's still a pretty shaky foundation you're on there. Even with the next element I'm going to talk about, you have quite the road ahead.

But I will say you're saving grace isn't this movie, but the plot element you introduce in this movie: The Multiverse.

With one animated movie, you were able to open up so many possibilities and stretch the imagination of what you could do with the character while still maintaining the roots and heart of such a beloved character.

So that brings us to the present.

And to be honest, it's not totally clear what this divorce actually means. Can Tom Holland continue to be Spider-man, just no longer have Fiege producing it anymore and in the Sony world with no connection to the MCU?

What about that Far From Home ending? Is that just left as a cliff hanger moving forward? Are there still Tom Holland Spider-man movies on his contract? Could those movies still be apart of the previous deal and then it ends? We don't know!

There are still some gaps of information.

But don't you worry Sony Exec. I've got you. You've got someone who is going to give it to you straight but give you the best path to working your way through what has the potential to be a trying time.

Because the truth is, you wouldn't be here without Disney. There's a reason this deal needed to be struck in the first place and its called 2014. In 2014, you suffered a pretty bad blow with a lack luster sequel with Andrew Garfield and spent Christmas getting hacked by the North Koreans. The very next year you recognized that this miraculous Spider-man universe you were creating with a Sinister Six movie and an Aunt May origin story movie wasn't going to work for you. You decided the best way to save yourself was to align yourself with Disney.

So how do you avoid that this time around? Well you lean in on your strengths.

Now a lot of this depends on if you can use Tom Holland.

Plan A: Stay the Course without Marvel

This is one of those grey areas. Again, I don't know if Tom Holland's portrayal of Spider-man falls under the deal with Disney and therefore makes him ineligible to continue as Spider-man outside of the MCU. I can't imagine a world that you agreed to that and if you did, you need to fire your lawyers now because Tom Holland is one of your strongest cards you have right now.

Are there elements you'd have to retcon? Yes. Without spoiling anything, I'd say the final end credit scene of Far From Home was a dream or something and you have the third movie follow Peter Parker on a more grounded level being exactly what he was wishing he could do, return to being a friendly neighborhood Spider-man. You hire the writers from the PS4 game and you make a pure Spider-man solo film, getting back to basics.

In this scenario, it also depends on who owns the villains.

Could you introduce a new villain in Spider-man 3: Without a Home (working title) and bring back the villains from the previous films (in an end credit scene) for a teaser of a future Sinister Six movie?

Again, it depends on what Sony can and cannot use. I think there's more of a foundation than meets the eye, it all just depends on a clever script that works around that pesky MCU connection. But if Vulture and Mysterio are fair game, it opens up for a potential Sinister Six movie come Spider-man 4.

And then there is Venom...

I honestly don't think this is as clear cut as it seems because I don't see these two coming together and seeming like they're in the same universe. I'm skeptical, but the point of this obvious strategy (given the assumption that Sony can use Tom Holland still) is to use what they have, continue on the path without Marvel, and bring Tom Holland's Spider-man back to earth a little bit.

But, there is a chance that you, good Sony Exec that you are unable to use Tom Holland moving forward. In that case, the first phone call you make is to fire your lawyer, because, again, that was a bad move on their part.

But the second call you make is a conference call with some familiar faces.

Plan B: The Raimi/Maguire Multiverse Approach

This may sound impossible, but I'm telling you, this is your best option outside of staying the course with Holland.

And this is where I have to be blunt. People do not trust you when it comes to live-action Spider-man. But they did like Sam Raimi's take on Spider-man.

The second call you make after firing your lawyer is a conference call with Tobey Maguire and Sam Raimi where you get on your knees and beg them to come back and do something fun. You give them two conditions: Maguire needs to play an old Peter Parker, and it needs to be set in a universe other than the MCU Spider-man Universe. Then you back away and let Sam Raimi do whatever the hell he wants.

I know what you're thinking, "People are going to be confused!" No! People will figure it out. Have fun with the Multiverse, tell him he has the breadth of the Spider-man Multiverse at his finger tips, go nuts.

If Raimi doesn't want to do it, at the very least get Maguire.

I don't even like Tobey Maguire as an actor that much, but this is where nostalgia, business, and clever writing have the opportunity to meet and make something great. Imagine after years, we finally get that 4th Spider-man movie but with a version of Peter Parker we haven't seen yet on the big screen, an older version!

And it honestly can only work with Maguire.

Garfield wasn't popular (and probably wouldn't want to come back), but if you reboot this franchise again, its only going to turn people off. Yes, the Maguire angle is a reboot, but it allows for a new chapter of Peter Parker's life to be explored.

And even if you don't wanna do that, there's also the silver platter that little Oscar winner Into the Spider-verse gave you last year.

Like I know this is just fan art and adapting an animation into a live action film so soon after its release would be messy and knee cap the possibilities of the animated franchise, but that doesn't mean those ideas and characters like Miles Morales and the multiverse can't be used in a live action film. It's taking a really popular concept in current pop culture and combining it with a franchise that, despite a bad third movie, is still considered a pretty great Superhero trilogy.

I usually don't like the idea of going back to old ideas like this, but not only do I feel like this could be an exception, I feel like it's bringing the old nostalgia into the modern day instead of just trying to recapture what those Raimi films were all about back in the day.

And when it comes to Venom, there's nothing saying Tom Hardy's Venom is in the MCU. Pretty sure you can use Venom however you want and it'll be accepted. It does not even matter if you threw him in the Maguire universe, all people would see is Tobey Maguire and Tom Hardy either teaming up or facing off and the tickets are bought.

Honestly, I see this as a great opportunity. The safest, profitable option is to stay on with Holland and I have no problem with that. But I almost like this approach more because it takes a live action Spider-man into a realm we haven't seen before. Old, multiverse hopping Spider-man. It's essentially the Jake Johnson Spider-man from Into the Spider-Verse, except it's Maguire playing him. Again, it capitalizes on both modern pop culture trends and interest in the multiverse and people's nostalgia for those cheesy old Raimi films.

And honestly, the remaining options are pretty bleak.

Plan C: Play up Animation/other strengths and hope a deal is struck

In the least appealing approach, you as the Sony Exec could play it immensely safe and hold out for a new deal with Disney. Take a break from the live action web slinger and focus on the other ingredients you have. Make those other villain movies like Morbius with... Jared Leto, and the Venom sequel that has a lot of indicators to say its going to be as terrible as the first (prove me wrong Serkis!)

But more importantly, focus more on your animated features. Bank on that awesome animation and break some barriers with that really unique story telling you brought in Into the Universe.

While I think there's a lot you can do if you chose this route, this is more a wait and see approach.

This is the approach where you're waiting for Disney to come around so you can go back to normal.

And while this is not a horrible strategy in the short term, eventually people are going to get an itch for a live action Spider-man film (no matter how much we complain about how many Spider-man 2's there have been, we love this story). Eventually people are going to just get bummed at Jared Leto's attempts to be in a superhero film and public opinion is going to against you.

Overall my friendly Sony Exec, you have an opportunity here. There is a lot you can do with your Spider-man Property and you don't really need Disney at this point. You gotta build some trust and give the people the understanding that you have a plan, but I see a path forward here. The important part is, do you?

Those are my personal recommendations and thoughts on the new Spider-man developments. What do you think? Where do you think Spider-man should head in the future? Is Tobey Maguire the future? How likely is that in your opinion? Comment and Discuss below! You can also send me your thoughts on Twitter @MovieSymposium as well as send me your requests for films I should review in the future. If you follow me on Twitter, you can get updates on future movie news and reviews coming out of this blog.

Thanks for Reading!