SALT LAKE CITY — A new report says Disney may have asked Sony for a much smaller piece of the “Spider-Man” pie than initially believed.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Disney reportedly asked Sony for 30 percent stake in future “Spider-Man” movies, which is notably lower than the 50 percent Deadline previously indicated had been asked for. In either case, Sony executives refused.
ComicBook.com reports that hypothetical earnings under the proposed deal, if applied to “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” would have resulted in about $553 million for Sony and $237 million for Disney, based on a $790 million profit.
THR also notes that sources within Sony said Tom Rothman, Sony Pictures’ chairman, feels the studio has learned everything they need to make a successful “Spider-Man” by themselves from Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige. As a result, the company apparently sees no need to renew its deal with Disney, which was initially proposed by former Sony chair Amy Pascal.
Meanwhile, other industry figures have weighed in on the whole issue. Todd McFarland, who previously worked on “Spider-Man” comics and co-created Venom, told Bloomberg he doesn’t see Spider-Man returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe any time soon.
“From what I’m hearing the terms are jumping pretty aggressively … (Sony is) going ‘we don’t need to give away the farm because we’re doing quite fine without you.’ I don’t know they’re (Sony and Disney) going to reconcile this difference,” he said.
I also reported for Deseret News that Joan Lee, Stan Lee’s daughter, believes Sony’s separate Spider-Man movies will add to Marvel Studios’ competition and offer “a different point of view” on Stan Lee’s creations.
On the other hand, CNET reports comedian and author Dominic Holland — who happens to be Tom Holland’s dad — has joined the #SaveSpiderMan camp in favor of Marvel and Disney. He wrote on his blog that while he has no inside knowledge of what’s going on, he feels like Sony and Disney will eventually reconcile.
“Whatever is decided by the big suits at these big Hollywood studios — my hunch is that the show will continue,” he wrote. “Too much at stake and too many dollars riding on it — and besides, everyone wants the same thing; namely, Spider-Man on large screens keeping people safe and entertained. And with Tom in the suit, for the time being at least.”