We’re now in yet another new Spider-Man era, with everyone’s favorite webslinger rebooted again, but this time being tossed into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We have a lot of thoughts about this latest development, but it isn’t taking long for some of the bigger questions to be answered, and some names to start surfacing for the now-open role of Peter Parker.
But first, it should be noted that Andrew Garfield was given the chance to return. According to The Daily Beast, the actor spoke with Marvel and Sony on Monday night about the possibility of reprising his role, but turned it down, rightfully sensing it didn’t make sense to suit up for what is another creative reboot. And so, who will wear the webslinger’s outfit?
Variety reports that Logan Lerman ("Fury," "Noah") and Dylan O’Brien ("The Maze Runner") are some of the names being tossed around, but it should be noted that a new Spider-Man is not expected to be decided on until there’s a director in place. Furthermore, other iterations of the character, such as the African-American/Puerto Rican Miles Morales, are also still very much on the table. So expect this rumor mill to churn a while longer before any decisions are made. However, Peter Parker will once again be back in high school when he’s rebooted, so the more things change…
Meanwhile, those villain centered spinoffs? Sony is still pressing ahead. Variety says that the studio is still planning "Sinister Six" (originally slotted for 2016 but moved back in the wake of the Marvel/Spider-Man news) and "Venom," though Kevin Feige won’t be involved with them. So we’re not sure how that makes sense, but presumably these pictures won’t dip into the Marvel-verse, probably because these characters require further contract agreements between the two companies. That said, the Spider-Man deal between Marvel and Sony didn’t involve any actual money, with both opting to just enjoy benefits out of the arrangement: Sony still has the lucrative licensing rights and gets to restart their character under Marvel’s banner, and Marvel now gets a big fan favorite into their movies, which helps their bottom line. Win, win.
Looking for Spider-Man to first pop up in "Captain America: Civil War" on April 6, 2016, and in his first new solo outing on July 28, 2017.