Spider-Man has seen better days. The character went from being the sunny webslinging hero of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to being a pile of dust in just three films, only to be brought back once more to save the universe and then go on vacation – which ended up being completely ruined. The future of your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man looked like it was going to be bright considering all of the success the character had when Marvel Studios stepped in to save the character after an abysmal reboot.

However, it looks like the era of the MCU Spider-Man (played by Tom Holland) may have spun its last web as reports are saying that Marvel Studios will no longer produce any more Spider-Man films after they and Sony failed to reach an agreement. More on the report below.

Deadline says the dissolution stems from “an inability by Disney and Sony Pictures to reach new terms that would have given the former a co-financing stake going forward.” This is a far cry from the surprising and critical deal to bring Spider-Man into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Said deal definitely made Marvel and Spider-Man fans (like myself) happy that the webslinger could play in the Marvel Studios sandbox.

The original deal saw that Marvel would not pay Sony to use Spider-Man in any of their films like Captain America: Civil War or the Avengers films, and they would have creative input on the character’s direction in Sony’s Spider-Man standalone films. Additionally, Marvel Studios would not receive a cut of the box office for any of Sony’s films that feature Spider-Man. And likewise with Sony, who did not receive a percentage of the revenue Disney made from Marvel films that had Spider-Man in them.

Avengers: Endgame is one of the highest-grossing films of all-time. Spider-Man: Far From Home was also one of the summer’s biggest blockbusters earning up to $1.1 billion. So while it may look like money isn’t the issue of the fallout, it is exactly the reason why the two parties split.

The report says that Disney requested for future Spider-Man films be a 50/50 co-financing arrangement between the studios, and that the offer could be extended to other spinoffs. Sony’s Tom Rothman and Tony Vinciquerra were said to have turned down that offer almost immediately, with no chance of them returning to the table. Basically, they did not want to share Sony’s biggest franchise with one of their competitors.

As a counter, Sony proposed keeping the arrangement going under the current terms where Marvel receives in the range of 5% of first-dollar gross. Disney refused that offer.

It’s only been four years since Spider-Man came onto the MCU scene, and his presence ended in just a snap. Which is very disappointing, especially with how Far From Home ended. Spoiler alert…

Mysterio revealed Spider-Man’s true identity to the world. It’s even more disappointing to know that Sony could carry a Spider-Man franchise on their own, especially since their first attempted reboot ended so poorly.

It’s because of Kevin Feige‘s leadership that Spider-Man was able to establish his cinematic reputation. He has a love for the character and knows his standing within the comic book lore. Of course, he was able to survive without him for eight years, but once Spider-Man was a part of the MCU, the MCU felt complete.

Now that Marvel Studios has ended their relationship with Sony, what will happen to Spider-Man in future MCU films? Though it is clear that Feige will no longer produce Spider-Man films, Spider-Man may still be involved in the MCU in some sort of capacity. We will just have to wait and see what happens.

UPDATE:
There’s been a few updates since the original story broke.
io9 says the “dispute is simply over a producer credit and negotiations are ongoing.” They add that Feige contributed on other Sony Spider-Man films he did not receive credit for.

Variety said:

[Source: Deadline]