
On Tuesday, fans around the world were shocked to learn that Sony is effectively pulling Spider-Man from the MCU. After months of negotiations, Sony and Disney had failed to reach a new deal regarding the web-head’s film rights. And, according to reports, Sony felt confident in their ability to continue Peter Parker’s story in own their burgeoning Spider-Verse.
Late Tuesday night though, things got a bit murkier when Sony released a statement seeming to contradict reports. The studio took to Twitter to post the following:
“Much of today’s news about Spider-Man has mischaracterized recent discussions about Kevin Feige’s involvement in the franchise. We are disappointed, but respect Disney’s decision not to have him continue as a lead producer of our next live-action Spider-Man film. We hope this might change in the future, but understand that the many new responsibilities that Disney has given him – including all their newly added Marvel properties – do not allow time for him to work on IP they do not own. Kevin is terrific and we are grateful for his help and guidance and appreciate the path he has helped put us on, which we will continue.”
This statement takes aim a Disney, putting the blame squarely on their shoulders. No mention is made of the proposed deals by either side, instead, Sony simply states that the House of Mouse is opting to take Kevin Feige off of all future Spider-Man projects. And obviously, this could very well be the case but reports from Tuesday tell a different story. Regardless though, most of this is likely public posturing on either side as they continue negotiations over the character’s rights.
Spider-Man: Far From Home is in the theaters now, it will be re-released with new footage over Labor Day Weekend.