In the wake of the recent hack at Sony, four of the studio’s upcoming films have already been uploaded to various sharing sites, salaries have been revealed, employees have expressed how they feel about some of the films that are being produced, social security numbers have been leaked, and numerous threats have been made towards employees. While the studio is attempting to get a handle of the situation, it is clear that a lot of damage has been done.

As Sony moves forward, it’s likely we’ll learn what kinds of things were leaked. The Wall Street Journal has done some digging, and have found as a result of the leaks that Sony has had discussions with Marvel about sharing Spider-Man, and that there have been talks with The Lego Movie directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller about an animated comedy.

We all know of how disappointing The Amazing Spider-Man franchise has been. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 received mixed reactions from fans and critics alike, and underperformed at the box office. While the numbers are disappointing, it appeared that the studio was attempting to regroup.

According to the reports, the e-mails that were leaked revealed that Sony Pictures head Amy Pascal was in talks with Marvel in regards to Spider-Man. In one of the e-mails, there was talks between studio execs about having Marvel produce a new trilogy, while they assumed creative control, marketing, and distribution responsibilities. In a separate e-mail, Marvel discussed having Spider-Man make his feature debut in Captain America: Civil War, where he would share the screen with the title character, as well as Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and possibly Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman).

Of course this is the kind of news that we have been waiting to hear. Many have criticized Sony for not being willing enough to even share the character for financial reasons. While these e-mails confirm that there have been talks between the two studios, ultimately nothing came out of it. Talks between the two eventually broke down, leaving Sony to work with what they have. While the e-mails expressed interest in having the webslinger appear in Captain America: Civil War, it did not reveal how Spider-Man would have fit into the film. Kevin Feige has stated that in the MCU, there are no secret identities, so even if Spider-Man was to be in the film, his reveal would have had no real meaning as the entire world already knows who the Avengers are.

Since talks have broken down, this puts the studio back at square one. Their Sinister Six film remains un-cast, as does Venom and the rumored female ensemble film. The e-mails also revealed that executives are planning to meet in January to talk about the future of the Spidey franchise.

The report also adds that an animated Spider-Man comedy is being developed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller. It really shouldn’t be a surprise that the studio would turn to these two, for they are known to turn bad ideas into box office gold. In fact they already have a strong relationship with the studio thanks in part to their work on Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, 21 Jump Street, and 22 Jump Street.

There is no official confirmation that Lord and Miller are on board for the idea. But if it is anything like The Spectacular Spider-Man animated series, then I am all in.

[Source: WSJ]