10 years ago, no one would have ever thought the Spider-Man film franchise could be anything but successful. The first two films are still regarded as some of the best superhero films ever made, and are partly responsible for the creation of the current Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Then, after Spider-Man 3 was released to mixed reactions following a troubled production, Sony decided to reboot the franchise and start fresh. Unfortunately for the studio, The Amazing Spider-Man wasn't the blockbuster it was hoping for, and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 received mixed reviews at best. Despite this, Sony had planned for a second sequel to The Amazing Spider-Man and several spin-off films in order to create its own cinematic universe.
Earlier today, we reported that Marvel was supposedly in talks with Sony Pictures about Spider-Man and the Avengers somehow crossing paths. On its own, that's amazing (no pun intended), but new reports hint at the idea of Sony rebooting the Spider-Man franchise - again.
The rumors come from Badass Digest, and detail a number of options that Sony is reportedly considering. It seems that Marvel might be hoping to take advantage of the studio's apparent lack of direction, though other plans have since come to light.
The first option, which already seems to be half-implemented, is that Sony would shelve the Spider-Man films for a few years and hope that demand for a film would reemerge once Spidey was off the table. As it stands now, The Amazing Spider-Man 3 isn't scheduled for release until 2018, which lends credence to the idea that Sony is letting the franchise rest for a bit.
The second possibility is that Sony will yet again reboot the film franchise, using the planned Sinister Six movie as a chance to introduce a new cast. The new Spider-Man would work together with the Sinister Six in order to take down a larger threat. This is a bit strange, especially since the Sinister Six have traditionally been one of the biggest threats Spider-Man can face.
At this point, it's clear that Sony has no idea what to do with the franchise. Since Spider-Man 3, the films simply haven't connected with audiences like the first two movies did, and with Sony having trouble with its other films as it is, perhaps it would be best to let Marvel handle the web-head for the time being.
As with all stories of this nature, anything and everything are subject to change if Marvel or Sony makes a statement. Until then, it looks like no one (even the studios) know exactly what the future of Spider-Man will be.
