There’s the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and then there’s everything else. For everything that falls under the latter, Sony and Fox are trying to establish their own cinematic universes and keep a tight grip on their respective Marvel properties. Sony already has plans to build a universe around the new Amazing Spider-Man franchise by launching spinoff films, while Fox is creating a world around X-Men and Fantastic Four, with the possibility of the two merging into one universe.

With Sony already working on spinoffs, the studio will have to look into finding a new director after The Amazing Spider-Man 3, as it has been confirmed that director Marc Webb will leave the franchise after the trilogy. On the X-Men side of things, The Wolverine director James Mangold confirms that he will begin shooting the tentatively titled The Wolverine 2 after X-Men: Apocalypse. Hit the jump for more.

First the news on Webb departing from The Amazing Spider-Man franchise after his third effort. In an interview with The Daily Beast, the director talked about how he would like to stay involved with the franchise he built from the ground up:

A lot of people would have to agree that after three films based on the same character, it would be time for the director to go a new direction. Actually if Sony was smart, they would take Webb up on his offer and mirror the same job Joss Whedon has over at Disney and Marvel. Sony is already intent on building this world around Spider-Man – as small as it is – by releasing at least one Spider-Man-related film a year, so why not give Webb the opportunity to expand it. That’s where the following quote comes in:

With Hugh Jackman not getting any younger, the chances of seeing a Wolverine trilogy gets smaller. With Jackman already eying his retirement as the Wolverine, the race is on to secure him long enough to see him through until the end, and Fox and James Mangold may have already found some “cool ideas.”. Collider found the following quote that confirms that The Wolverine 2 will be shot after X-Men: Apocalypse.

@R__E__D_R__U__M @20centuryfox @ShuDonner We are figuring it all out. At the moment, I'm shooting The next #Wolverine after #XmenApocalypse.

— Mangold (@mang0ld) March 15, 2014

It’s not an official plot, but we get a small sense of when the film might take place.

If First Class takes place in the ’60s, Days of Future Past takes place in the ’70s after the events of The Wolverine, and Apocalypse takes place in the ’80s, then The Wolverine 2 could fall somewhere perhaps in the ’90s and beyond. There will be a lot of time-traveling going on in this film, so the franchise’s timeline may change, for better or for worse. But the most important question is if Jackman is willing to play the Wolverine again.

[Source: The Daily Best | Collider]