Have Sony/Marvel Reached a ‘Spider-Man’ Deal?

When the Sony hack attacks by North Korea evolved from a surreal, schadenfreude-filled incident to a watershed moment where the effects on the American psyche, speech, and capitalist practices will be measured in the years to come, my laptop gave me the middle finger and stopped working. It was like, totally the best time for me to not write.

Now that I have ol’ trusty back from Apple, I have some catching up to do. I’ll be writing about the coming hangover concerning this attack and what I personally believe may be the start of the world’s first Cyber War, but for now I can’t help but dwell on some actual movie business news coming from the Sony leaks. Thankfully this has nothing to do with insulting a celebrity.

According to Comic Book Resources, Marvel and Sony have reached or are inches away from finalizing a deal concerning New York’s friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Should they happen with these proposed plans, Spider-Man will be absorbed into the Marvel universe with a stand-alone movie with Drew Goddard (The Cabin in the Woods) eyed to direct. Spider-Man will then be involved fully with Captain America: Civil War and The Avengers: Infinity War — Part 1.

This news differs from earlier reports that Sony and Marvel were merely talking about getting Spider-Man involved with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Now, somehow it seems more and more like a possibility.

Here’s how it will go down. If the deal is reached — and this is an if — Sony will co-finance 25% of Captain America: Civil War. Marvel will then pony up 25% for the next solo Spider-Man film, and Sony will be allowed to use two (2!) Marvel Studios characters and continue the events of Civil War. From there, Spider-Man will appear in Infnity War — Part 1 in 2018 and a second solo film (would this be the fourth solo film in total?) in 2019.

From Comic Book Resources:

Sony asked for approval over the costume, script (but only the parts specifically involving Spider-Man), and casting, with said actor required to sign a three-picture deal or more. The way this part of the document is worded makes it sound very much like a collaboration rather than one studio having more control than the other. They do however point out that Kevin Feige must serve as a producer, and if for some reason he leaves Marvel, they would be allowed to select his replacement. They also want Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach to be given executive producer credits, and state that it would be pre-agreed that Drew Goddard both writes and directs the first movie.

There are some caveats too. Namely, if any Marvel movies using Spider-Man fail to make their projected release date, Sony would be paid a whopping $100 million and the deal terminated. That’s kind of harsh.

On the business side of things, if any of the Marvel movies Spider-Man is included in misses their release date, Sony would be paid damages of $100 million, and the deal would be terminated. Sony have only three years and nine months to start pre-production before the rights revert, and Captain America: Civil War would reset the clock on this period. Sony also asked for Marvel’s help in ensuring that the “D Machine” would have to be accessible for Spider-Man’s solo movies in regards to their TV channels, radio networks, theme parks, and more. The deal would be announced at a press event by both studios on a mutually agreed upon date.

I wish I could get away with calling more directors “__ Machine.” Quentin Tarantino the Q Machine. Spike Lee the S Machine. Jonathan London the J Machine. They all sound like bad ’70s villains. (Sorry, Jonathan!)

Comic Book Resources makes it clear this stuff comes from internal documents and appears to be more of a gameplan from Sony than any actual final deal. We of Geekscape reiterate that none of this is finalized or confirmed. Considering the level of international urgency Sony have found themselves in I doubt they’re thinking much about a teenaged superhero in red and blue spandex anyway.

What if Kim Jong-Un actually doesn’t care about The Interview and hacked Sony just to pressure them so Spider-Man can join The Avengers? I would, as kids today put it, can’t even.