MarvelBlog News for September 15th, 2024

Are your Spidey senses tingling? I ask because we have a VERY spidery update in the latest MarvelBlog News. So, let’s get started.

Who to Believe?

We’ve had conflicting reports this week that are too funny not to mention.

They’re funny because they fly in the face of one another, as one group claims a project just got scrapped.

Another says that anybody saying that is your run-of-the-mill internet liar.

Since the latter group involves people working on the project, I’m inclined to believe them, but let’s back up and discuss it all.

Here’s the original tweet from Discussing Film, which you’ll notice includes a “readers context” update.

Sony reportedly scrapped most of ‘BEYOND THE SPIDER-VERSE’ for creative reasons.

The film is unlikely to release before 2027.

(Source: https://t.co/8wstQVPYII) pic.twitter.com/Ig9a7ryTKT

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) September 10, 2024

In case you can’t or don’t read Twitter (I’m never calling it X), the story states:

“Sony reportedly scrapped most of ‘BEYOND THE SPIDER-VERSE’ for creative reasons. The film is unlikely to release before 2027.”

How does that report make me feel? Well, here’s my favorite thing in cinema last year:

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse wound up being my number one film of 2023, and I’ve been a Lord & Miller fan since the beginning.

I’m one of the few people who can honestly say that I watched Clone High’s pilot the night it aired in 2002.

So, this one’s a bit personal for me. However, the facts surrounding the story add up.

Sony recently ended its television deal with Lord & Miller, which hinted at studio dissatisfaction with the pair.

While I never believed that Sony would remove the directorial team from a Spider-Verse sequel, anything is possible.

If I’m Lord & Miller, I feel undervalued since the last film earned back a factor of 5-6x its budget.

Generally, studios reward creators for that sort of performance rather than end their deals.

Alas, there’s a second half to this story. There were worker abuse allegations involving the project.

Then, we have the other thing…

History Possibly Repeating Itself

Have you watched Solo: A Star Wars Story? Well, the film suffers from the worst possible Star Wars curse. I liked it.

Historically, I’ve disliked pretty much everything involving Star Wars despite my love of James Earl Jones (RIP, my king).

Whenever I have enjoyed something Star Wars-related, the overwhelming majority of fans have despised it.

This seems like a good time to mention that Solo: A Star Wars Story is my all-time favorite Star Wars movie.

There’s a messy story behind the scenes, though. Lord & Miller originally worked on the project.

Then, after filming began, Disney fired the duo and replaced them with Ron Howard.

So, kicking Lord & Miller from a project is far from unprecedented. But the story still doesn’t make sense.

I say this because Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse earned nearly $700 million at a time when box office hadn’t fully recovered yet.

Sony would be firing the golden goose at a time when they’re facing the prospect of releasing Kraven the Hunter and Madame Web in the same year.

That wouldn’t make a lick of sense. Sure enough, Daniel Pemberton later tweeted this:

Don’t really ever want to weigh in on this sort of stuff BUT would you ever believe there could sometimes be stuff on the internet that might not always be particularly accurate? Hmmmm…

🤔 https://t.co/OfXXZKvled

— Daniel Pemberton (@DANIELPEMBERTON) September 10, 2024

“Don’t really ever want to weigh in on this sort of stuff BUT would you ever believe there could sometimes be stuff on the internet that might not always be particularly accurate? Hmmmm…”

Who is Daniel Pemberton? He’s the composer who created the music for the first two Spider-Verse films.

So, 1) he’s VERY good at his job and 2) he’s someone who would know what’s happening with the third one.

Therefore, I’m inclined to believe that this was yet another “insider” farming for clicks by using a misleading topic.

Then, a more credible film site fell for it and amplified the “news.”

The Spider-Man That Is Happening

While we’re suddenly in wait-and-see mode on Spider-Verse III news, there is a positive in Spidey World this week.

Sony has (apparently) chosen the director for Spider-Man 4…and you know them.

Thus far, the person is only in discussions, and we know how that has gone lately with comic book films.

Still, The Hollywood Reporter believes that Sony will soon announce Destin Daniel Cretton as the director on the project.

So, we’re supposed to believe that Cretton was to direct the next two Avengers films. However, he’s immediately available for Spidey.

No, that doesn’t pass the laugh test. Marvel found out it could get the band back together with Robert Downey Jr. and the Russo Brothers.

That left Cretton on the outside looking in. Now, he’ll get his by helming what’s sure to be a massively successful film.

This announcement is still a massive surprise, though. Marvel has been letting people know that Shang-Chi is ready to begin.

Obviously, that’s not true since Cretton just filled up his dance card for the next 18 months.

So, the next thing we’re left to wonder is whether someone new will direct Shang-Chi 2. That would be…disappointing.

From the sound of things, Spider-Man 4 will start filming within the next six months, which strikes me as an escalation.

The rush speaks to Sony’s desperation to get another hit after a rough year.

However, as you’re about to see, all hope isn’t lost yet.

Marvel Miscellany

Sony does still have another ace up its sleeve, though. Here’s the final trailer for Venom: The Last Dance.

Yeah, Kraven may be a train wreck running over the previous train wreck that was Madame Web, but at least there’s this.

Venom 3 looks fantastic and should perform on a par with the last film, which earned $507 million against a $110 million budget.

This film reportedly cost a similar amount, which is remarkable frugality in this day and age.

Frankly, this film could experience a 25 percent dropoff in revenue and still be profitable.

Every dollar after that goes to make up for the losses incurred by Madame Web and (soon) Kraven the Hunter.

Finally, there’s this. Jack Huston has joined the cast of Amazon’s Spider-Noir.

So, we’ve had a decidedly Spider-Man-intensive week of MarvelBlog News.

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